Welcome Life
by syrai
Summary: Delia Brown is living in Everwood carrying a big secret on her shoulders. Bright Abbott on the other hand is leading a wonderful life in New York... what happens when Bright comes back to visit his hometown? BrightDelia! ON HIATUS.
1. Prologue

**Title: **Welcome Life

**Fandom: **Everwood

**Setting: **Future fic

**Rating: **PG but might change ;)

**Genre:** Drama/Romance/etc  
**Pairings:** Delia/Bright, naturally  
**Status:** WiP

Summary: Delia Brown is still living in Everwood carrying a big secret on her shoulders. Bright Abbott on the other hand is leading a wonderful life in New York and to him, coming back to Everwood because of her mother sounds almost the most stupid thing he's ever done… Till he meets all grown-up Delia. D&B!

**A/N #1:** I blame F and the lovely people back at FanForum. It was them that made me want to write, but it was F that in the end got me into writing this. Granted, it was me who told her Bright and Delia would make such a great couple in the future but… it was her who told I should give it a go when I said I had been thinking of writing a fic. So, whatever I say or do… blame F, ok? And since I haven't seen the episodes of third season yet, I'll go with what I know from season 2. Therefore, Hannah and others that I don't know yet cannot be seen here. Well anyway, I wanted to try and write something different from what I've written so far and here it is.

**A/N # 2: **Both Delia and Bright have changed a lot, but you can't really expect people to stay the same year after year.

* * *

**Prologue**

To Delia Brown every day just slowly floated by and all she could do was hang in there, pretend it was what she wanted. Every day was a copy of the previous one but hey, it was Everwood so what else could you really expect? People lived their own lives, interfered with others', acted stupid and made a mess… and that was pretty much it. Still, life wasn't as simple in Everwood as outsiders thought, in fact it was much more complicated than they could ever possibly imagine. People had their issues but yet, it was slow in there. Slow and unsatisfying – at least for someone who wanted so much more from her life than this.

She had no one else to blame than herself, though.

When she had been little she had always thought she'd become someone important; the first female president of her country or something similar. An astronaut. She'd be someone. She'd go traveling and see the world, adventure, go to college… and fall in love. Have a family of her own and tell her kids amazing stories of all the fascinating trips her mother had gone through and they'd want to be just like her. Only now it seemed it was something she'd never get and it was all her fault.

She wasn't unhappy in the true sense of the word, just restless. Granted, she would have plenty of time to make her dreams come true in the future but still, at the age of 18 she had already felt like she was trapped in there, trapped into the little town with no way out and that was when the problems had started to knock her door. She had dreamt of going to college some day and her father had already promised he'd pay for it… but then, something had happened. Something even her father didn't know and she sure as hell wasn't going to tell.

Now, after few years – at the age of 20 she had finally found her way though every now and then the same old feeling of being trapped came back. This was one of those moments.

All the money her father had promised to Delia… she had lost. You know how you go out to have fun with your friends and they get you to do something stupid? Yeah, it was exactly what had happened to her… only no one had pushed her into doing it. No, actually it had been her idea and her friends had told her not to. _No, Delia, gambling isn't a good idea… Think what you might lose._ Her father, Andy Brown had naturally been unsatisfied with her decision to "postpone" her college studies but the truth was she had no other choice. To her father she had said that it was her own decision to make after all and that lately she had felt college just wasn't for her. It was a lie, of course but needed one. Besides, Andy had wanted her to go to Denver so she'd be near… but if she was going studying, she'd at least go as far away from Everwood as possible. She loved Andy of course, but there was no reason good enough for her to want to stay. Not anymore. Not after everything.

Naturally, Delia could've told the truth; she could've asked him to give her more money but she couldn't. She had her pride, too. So instead she had decided to get the money back on her own, even if it meant postponing her studies with few years. She had had summer jobs, part-time jobs here and there, but this was her real job after graduating and it felt good to do something, even though it wasn't quite what she had wanted to do in the future. This was her one-way ticket out… the only way out, actually.

She had come up with an excuse, too. Her father thought Delia had decided to go to Africa no matter what it cost before continuing her studies. In some level he was proud of that 'decision' and it made Delia feel nothing but guilt. She had said it was a dream planted by Linda Abbott, doctor who had spent years in Africa trying to help those in need of it. Now, getting money to make that "dream" come true was another story to tell… so she had explained that she could've used her father's money of course, but it would've taken the excitement out of it, erased the satisfaction. So, instead Delia had found a job with what to pay her trip and that was what she wanted Andy to believe. And that was what Andy did believe.

If Andy had even known half of it… She liked working in that small café, it was ok, but her part-time job as a tattoo drawer in Denver was what she really loved to do. She didn't know what it was with tattoos that made her love them so much, they were just fascinating somehow. Every tattoo had a story to tell no matter how small and insignificant they seemed through a stranger's eyes.

Yeah, the sweet and innocent Delia Brown had truly grown up to be something different from the others. She had grown to be something very different from what they all had thought her to be, actually. Andy had always imagined her little girl being stubborn, but sweet teenager and right after her 13th birthday, he had realized just how wrong he was. Delia had been stubborn, yes, but also unstable, rebellious and wild. If there was a trouble, she was usually the main cause or at least part of it. Maybe that was part of the reason she wanted leave the town behind. Every mistake of hers, every stupid thing she had ever done… people remembered and reminded. You think things would go by quickly in a place like that but it was actually the opposite. And it wasn't just that but the fact she still kept doing those stupid things over and over again. Her life simply needed a new direction and as long as she was there, it wasn't going to happen. As long as she lived there, she kept being trapped. Dead inside.

Sometimes she felt like she was Belle from the Beauty and the Beast. Living boring life in a little village where she was supposed to do what others expected her to. So, where was her beast?

When had it come to this? At first Delia had loved the town from the bottom of her heart even though she never got that pony she was promised, and she knew her father had done the right decision to move there but now… Somewhere between Ephram's leaving, her father's new girlfriends and all her ex-boyfriends making her life harder it had changed. Everwood was her home and would always be but it just wasn't enough.

Thank God she was so close… If nothing went wrong, just another few months and she'd be done. She'd have enough money to pay her studies and move out. Bye, bye Everwood; welcome life.

* * *

Bright Abbott knew who it was on the other end of the line even before he answered his fancy cell-phone. It wasn't that hard to guess; it was the time of the year for Rose, his mother to start calling him, asking if he'd come visit Everwood someday soon. It was natural for Rose to ask such thing, especially now as it'd been almost two years since his last visit. Why? Why so long? He didn't know. 

"Abbott."

"Bright!" As he had guessed, it was his mother's delighted voice that answered him back. Bright smiled, pacing through his large white living-room towards the balcony. "Hi mom, how's things there?" He opened the door with one hand and stepped over the threshold into the fresh air. He left the door behind him open, just in case.

"Oh everything's fine, I just felt like calling you."

He swallowed the sigh climbing up his throat. "Yeah, look mom, I'm sorry I haven't kept touch, I've been just damn busy with everything." It was true, wasn't it? He had his job, his friends, his parties, his life.

"No, it's ok dear, I know you are… honey, your father and I were wondering if you're coming home soon? We haven't seen you for so long and…"

Now the sigh escaped his lips. Of course he wanted to see his parents again and his sister Amy but still going back to Everwood didn't sound tempting. That little town brought nothing but sad memories to his mind, all the good ones had seemed to fade away. "I don't know…" He said closing his eyes, taking a deep breath. "I gotta think about it."

His mother's voice got much sharper tone. "Bright, you can't run forever." It was almost like a demand.

His eyes snapped open. "What, I'm not running", he replied hastily, too hastily to even convince himself. Maybe he was running then, so what?

"You proved us wrong already, ok? You are a successful business man, manager of many known talents and we're proud of you. So get your ass back home, you're not a child anymore and you don't need our approval."

"I got the hint, mom, I did", he said smiling. Alright, maybe it truly was time to go back as a changed man and show everyone how wrong they had been. "How bout if I come down there for the summer? I mean, I've earned a holiday and I can take care of business from there too. I'm practically married with my phone anyway."

"Really?" Rose sounded more than surprised. "Wow, I didn't think it'd be this easy."

There was a distant knock on the door that caught Bright's attention. "I gotta go mom, someone's at the door." He turned around and walked through the living-room towards the door. "Alright then. Let us know when you'll be coming, ok?"

"I will." He opened the door with one hand, still holding the phone on his ear. "See you soon, mom." A girl wearing tight white boots, black miniskirt and white long-sleeved shirt shut the door, gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before passing him by and threw herself on beige sofa eyes on him.

"You too." Rose was the first one to hang up after which Bright dropped the phone on top of the drawer next to the door and turned to look at the figure behind her. There was a seducing smile plastered on her lips and he couldn't prevent his arms folding and his knuckles touching his lips to hide the amused smile. The girl just didn't know when to give up.

"Nicki, how nice of you to come visit me like this", Bright greeted with laughter in his voice.

"Well you didn't leave me any other choice", she replied sounding more than accusing. The smile was already gone. Maybe she truly had thought he would've changed his mind in two days? Not a chance. "I'm sorry, but I thought I made myself clear when we last spoke. I wasn't kidding Nicki, it's over. Really."

Her bottom lip was trembling dangerously. How pathetic was she? "Nicki, you ain't the right one for me and I'm certainly not the right one for you. We have nothing in common!"

"You're wrong", she stated, "We have more in common than you're willing to admit. Don't do this to me, give me another chance." Nicki got up from the sofa and it only took few steps for her to close the space between them. She grabbed his arms staring at him right in the eye but the gesture only made him more amused. "Please Bright." He had never thought Nicki Sterling; the rich little girl who was used to get what she wanted, was one to beg but apparently she was. It wasn't the first time he had been wrong.

"Nicki, you're making a fool out of yourself", he managed to keep his voice firm while saying so and pushed her farther away. Why couldn't she just understand that it was over between them? The little they had had was now gone for good and the best thing for her was to just accept it.

"You're a beast!"

"Maybe so", he laughed, "but it doesn't change how I feel. Now please go and stop acting like a brat."

"I'll make you pay, Abbott, be sure of that." Within two seconds the door slammed shut violently and Bright was left alone in the middle of the room. Going to Everwood didn't sound all that bad anymore.

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**A/N: **Reviews feed my soul. As always. 


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N:** _"Borg" -_ If you want to read a fic where everything's like in the show… well gee, go watch the show then! Why are there fics if everything is supposed to be like it is in the show? Er, hello? Anyway, I think the thing with me is that I want to explore these characters and their other sides… they can't be just what meets the eye in the show, can they? Time changes people, or so they say. To better and to worse.

If you want to read a fic where everything's like in the show… well gee, go watch the show then! Why are there fics if everything is supposed to be like it is in the show? Er, hello? Anyway, I think the thing with me is that I want to explore these characters and their other sides… they can't be just what meets the eye in the show, can they? Time changes people, or so they say. To better and to worse. 

Warning: Read above. Things. Are. Different. Deal with it or don't read, simple as that. Flamed saying Delia and Bright are out of character will probably be just laughed at, cause I don't think any of us can know for sure what they'll be like in ten years. I'm just stubborn that way.But, after that said, others, thanks for reviewing! Keep reviewing, it usually helps me write, mwuahah. And, oh, I don't see the age difference as a problem, maybe cause Delia is 20 years old here and old enough to take care of herself. Well, should be anyway. )

On we go. Finally.

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Chapter 1

Nicki Sterling was nothing but a bad memory. Andhe rather kept her that way; as a memory that didn't need to be remembered.

Bright only wished she would've understood that, too. It'd been whole three days since his mother had called him telling him to come over; three days since Nicki's uninvited and highly amusing, but unpleasant visit. Now, he had thought that he had been more than clear when announcing he wanted nothing to do with the woman in the future. Then how was it, that immediately after stepping out of the airplane and opening his cell phone he was greeted by 7 voice messages left by none other than Nicki Sterling. For a smart girl it was ridiculous how low she could go to get what she wanted. Honestly, was it worth anything anymore when she go what she wanted by begging? _Begging_ for heaven's sake. Hadn't she embarrassed herself enough as it was? Guess not. He didn't feel sorry for her though… amusement was the right word to describe his feelings. He knew it had nothing to do with Nicki loving him, because she didn't. She just wasn't ready to give up on her secret lover only a week before she was supposed to get wed with some other man. Boy, what a beautiful marriage those two would have, she and her catch of the month.

Still despite her being disloyal to her fiancé, it wasn't that he didn't like her, of course he did. I mean, he had had a very… _intense_ relationship with the woman at least for two months or so, which was a lot by his scale and if he hadn't liked her, it would've never had happened. Well, maybe once, but just once. The problem Bright had encountered with the ladies lately, was a very simple one but difficult to solve. No matter how beautiful they were, no matter how intelligent and educated or rich they were… he just didn't find what he was looking for. Probably, because he didn't even know what it exactly was that he was looking for. Something different, for sure. Something new. Something exciting… refreshing.

Screwing married women; being their private toy had lost its shine months ago and even fooling around with the young and rich ones wasn't that fun anymore. Against general beliefs, he didn't date these rich girls because he'd needed their money… but because they didn't need his. He had learnt his lesson the hard way and wasn't about to repeat that mistake ever again.

The shadows of his past were forgotten the minute he heard his name. "Bright! Over here!" Even in the middle of Denver's busy airport, he recognized his mother's voice easily. Hearing it felt great every time. He turned around smiling and was greeted by the sight of both of his parents making their way through the crowd towards him. As expected, it was Rose who closed him into a tight hug before he could even say anything.

"I've missed you so, so, so, so much!" She said half crying, half laughing and kissing his cheeks. For a moment there he felt like a teenage-boy all over again. But unlike then, her behavior didn't bother him now, nor did it embarrass him anymore. It was actually great to know he had been missed, after all.

"Son, good to have you back", his father, Harold, said petting his shoulder after Rose finally released her son. The hug seemed to last for over 10 minutes though. "Good to be back, dad." Against his own expectations, he actually meant it.

Only after they had dragged his luggage into the car, Bright acknowledged the fact someone was missing. "So where's my little sister? Sulking in her room? Grounded?"

"Oh stop teasing her, honey", Rose laughed at first fastening her seatbelt, but her tone got serious when she continued, "Seriously, she's a big girl and been through a lot, so don't you dare to tease her."

Harold started the car without taking part of the conversation. "I won't, I won't. I'll behave, promise." Telling her the thought had never really even crossed his mind would have probably been useless, so didn't even bother. Once a teasing brother, always a teasing brother. At least it was how his parents saw him most of the time. Suddenly all the reasons why he hadn't visited his birth-home for such a long time came rushing back to him. He sighed having to accept the fact he could never completely change the way his parents saw him.

"Good", Rose glanced at her son through the mirror, "Tiffany got sick so she's at home with her."

"Ouch, doesn't sound good." That definitely, nicely put; sucked.

As if Amy hadn't suffered enough as it was. Her life sure wasn't what he had always pictured it to be… it was sad more than anything to realise how wrong things can go. Being her brother he had always wanted nothing but her happiness, but Amy's life hadn't really turned out as she had planned it to. Who would've known that in the end, it was the Abbott's first-born that managed to do something with his life, when the youngest child of whom they had had high expectations turned out to fail on that department? He wasn't malicious about it though, just surprised. Perhaps a bit proud of himself, too, but mostly worried about her.

Her future had looked so bright when she was young… up till Colin's, her boyfriend's death of course. After that it had been nothing but downfall ever since, with few occasional high points giving her false hope. First there was the depression his death caused, then there came Tommy; the drug-addict and after him came all the other unspeakable problems… For a moment they had all thought things would change; get better somehow. Maybe because they had been dating with Ephram, when all the sudden Madison's friend called Ephram telling there was something he needed to know… that he had a baby boy in New York. Amy had thought she was the love of his life but realised soon enough that the title was already taken. Madison was the love of his life and there was no point in fighting for him when in the end, she didn't want to win that fight. The child needed his father and Amy had let him go… they all knew it had been the right decision to make, but it didn't prevent it from hurting. Neither did it prevent Amy from sinking deeper into the darkness.

Of course, something good had come out of it too. At the age of 21 Amy gave birth to her only daughter, Tiffany and the incident forced her to rethink the way she lived her life. Alcohol, random flings and all the other insane stuff she did to ease the pain had to go and in the end, Tiffany turned out to be the only painkiller she ever needed. They were still living at the Abbotts, Amy and Tiffany that is but it had worked out swell. Tiffany had gotten Amy's old room, who in turn had taken over her older brother's old room. He hadn't mind, in fact, he had thought it was a great idea. That way it was easier for Harold to keep his eyes on his daughter which was exactly what Bright wanted too. It felt good to know Tiffany was in safe hands… just in case Amy couldn't resist the temptation. Of course, Amy enjoyed his full trust but there was always the 'what if' lingering around.

"You don't mind if I close my eyes for a moment, do you? It was a tiring flight and all…" Or was it just a way to hide his feelings from his parents?

* * *

Why did people always confuse a tattoo drawer with a tattoo maker? Delia didn't know. Yesterday she had as usual been forced to explain the difference to some kids that had been curious about her job due some silly school project. In a way she maybe should've been flattered by that. 

A tattoo maker made a tattoo. A tattoo drawer simply designed one. Being a tattoo drawer; designer was the easiest job she'd ever had. She'd been talented drawer ever since she was young and she knew it. Putting herself down wasn't something Delia Brown did. Sadly, it was also the most unprofitable job she'd ever had. Which was why she had been forced to go find other jobs; more prosperous ones. And with her ambition, she had found a couple. 4 nights a week she served tables in the local cafe and it wasn't that bad. Rest of her week went by working in a place called "Golden Velvet" which was a club in Detroit. That was a job she didn't want her father finding about.

Of course, it probably would've had been the best idea to give up on tattoo drawing, but she had never been able to do even consider it. For one, she loved her working hours and she absolutely loved her work. Whenever a customer wanted something new that had never been done before she was summoned. Whenever the owner of the shop decided that it was time to redo their offerings, they gave her a call. Usually she drew at the shop because it was the only place that gave her the needed peace and the right mood… there was something magical about that place, but occasionally she settled with a lot less and drew at home. Now however, it'd been two weeks since her skills had been last needed and it was both worrying and boring… worrying, because she didn't know if they'd ever need her again (although she did suspect Sheila would've have called her if that was the case) and boring, because she had nothing with what to challenge her own drawing skills. Sketching flowers and such into napkins, newspapers, notebooks and alike wasn't really all that challenging or fun. Besides, reading his morning paper with little green men drawn to stare at him was driving her father absolutely insane.

5 weeks ago Delia had finally found the kind of job that was just what she needed to solve her money issues, or part of it anyway. Her best friend, Ariel, had worked there for over a couple of months before getting pregnant… well, actually, before it had started to really show. After her tummy had gotten a bit too round, she'd been fired of course. Knowing Delia was in need of money, she had told her about the spot being open and Delia hadn't hesitated. Much.

The only reason to hesitate was her father. He'd have killed her if he knew.

Naturally, she wouldn't have called herself a _stripper_ per se… Exotic dancer was more like it. More classier somehow. She had seen dirty strip-clubs before and "Golden Velvet" was nothing like them. It was almost funny in a way, in a pathetic kind of way. Delia had seen so many movies with young girls being forced to do the same kind of work to get a roof over their heads or to feed their kids… and not once had she thought of the possibility that it'd once be her doing it. After all, Delia Brown was indeed Andy Brown's daughter of whom everyone around her thought highly… a daddy's girl she was and therefore she could never have gotten involved with the underworld. Well.

You never know how wrong you are till you experience it. Being a cliche wasn't as fun as it sounded, but she had learnt to live with it. Things could've been worse, after all.

Letting her body slide down the cold steel bar, she gave a seducing smile to her drooling and mostly drunken audience. It was almost over anyway; all she had to do was one final dance move, bend down to let the young, blonde guy stuff some money into her panties (which he undoubtedly was going to do – it was so easy to tell when it was someone's first time in a club like _that_) and retreat to the safety of the back-stage.

When she finally got off the stage she felt mainly relieved. She had given up on being shy during her first week there and the disgust, caused by strangers' fingers touching her skin, stuffing money inside her clothes making her feel despicable, was slowly starting to fade away, too. Besides, she had already got a few regulars that were more than happy to pay some extra which always made her feel a bit better. She didn't mind anymore. If a guy was stupid enough to waste his money on a dancer; on an illusion he'd never be able to touch, well, then it was his problem, not hers.

She entered the changing room yawning with nothing but a hot bath on her mind. Dancing in high heels for longer than half an hour was a lot harder than it looked, that was for sure.

"Hey hunny, ya looked good up there. You've really learnt the moves", Katherine, one of her fellow-workers' called out from her seat while finishing her make-up. She was already way over 30 years old, but looked more like 20 something. "Heh, thanks Katie. You aren't looking that bad either." No, not bad, but definitely weird. She was wearing this funny looking outfit with a tight corset and everything that reminded Delia of renaissance… was she actually going to dance with that on or was it just part of some sort of new act she didn't know of?

"Oh please, I look horrible. But what Mac wants, Mac gets."

Ah of course, now she remembered. Mac, the club owner had talked about wanting to bring something 'new' to the club… something that had never been seen before to get new visitors. Naturally, being a guy he hadn't wasted another thought on just how well those dresses fitted with dancing. All he cared about was the looks. And well, they weren't even that beautiful. Just some big, fluffy and colorful dresses with an opening so big, that it was practically a miracle if your breasts stayed unrevealed. Thank God Delia had been hired few weeks after they had designed those dresses... and thank God, again, that making them all had taken almost two months.

"You heading back home hunny?"

Delia nodded sitting down onto her usual spot few tables from Katherine. Raking her fingers through recently cut fringe she let the air out of her lungs, exhausted. "Yeah", she said pulling on her own T-shirt while unhooking the nasty-feeling bra, "All I wanna do is take a bath and go to bed." After she was done with the bra, she changed her panties feeling nothing but pleasure when she finally got to pull her own comfy jeans on.

"I hear ya, doll." She glanced over and added, "Hell, seriously, go get some sleep sugar."

"That's the plan", the girl replied picking up her backpack from the floor. Hell yeah it was her plan… hopefully dad wasn't at home yet, because she was going to spend few hours lying in the bathtub and he would've only nagged. Even the thought of bath made Delia's body relax momentarily. "See you later Katie", she threw over her shoulder before she exited the room, "be good."

Katherine smiled, amused. She always said that. And yet, she never was.


	3. Chapter 2

A/N:

Here it comes. Slowly. I'm actually moving outta my mom's house, it's me growing up and all, so I don't know when I'll have time on my hands to write **any** of my stories. That, in a word, sucks but hey, girl's gotta grow up eventually no matter how much that sucks. Who the hell invented the term "paying rent" I ask you? What's up with that? Eatable or DVD-buy-able money for a goddamn rent! Please!

If I've messed with the years or something, I'm sorry, I was slightly out of my mind when writing this chapter, because of my driving test. Don't you just hate the fact you have to wait till you're 18 till you can get your license here and that I've been 18 since the beginning of this year and I STILL haven't gotten it? Call me lazy, ok?

Anyway, big thank you's go to **Jewel, Panda, Sassy, Krazypirategurl, unfolddream, saint's hands, SHADOWALKR & Jalna** for the support ) Reviews keep my muse happy, so you know. Hope I didn't forget anyone!

A word of **WARNING** for those who don't like Madison/Ephram. You have been warned. There. Aren't I adorable?

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**Chapter 2**

Delia loved mornings. When she had been little, she had always hated waking up because it meant she had to stop dreaming, but nowadays she truly loved both waking up and the mornings. They were magical moments when she had time only for herself and to no one else. Still, it was what happened after the whole waking-up part that she didn't like all that much. It was called "life".

Whenever she had time, this what she did. Came out to sit on their veranda with a mug of coffee and folded paper sitting on the wooden table next to her. She was still wearing her pajamas and therefore she always took a blanket to wrap around her delicate body with her. And so she just sat there enjoying of the warmth the blanket brought watching how people came out of their houses, stepped into their cars and went to work. Started their normal, boring days like every day before it. It comforted her somehow, knowing that she wasn't the only one who had been forced to accept the dull routings of every-day life, but it also made her sad. Most of the time it seemed like it was what these people really wanted and that made it different. It wasn't something she had wanted.

_Stop with the self-pity already and get a grip,_ she told herself, but like usually, it had no effect on her. Just words spoken without saying them out loud. Words that meant nothing when there wasn't anyone else telling it to her; making her listen to them. It wasn't like her to feel this lonely and depressed all the time, but every now and then a feeling of longing hit her. What was she longing for? She wasn't sure if it was freedom and different kind of life, or just simply someone instead of something.

She took a sip of the hot, black coffee before placing it back to where it belonged trying to cheer herself up. Just when she was about to take a hold of the paper, the door opened and Andy walked out with a mug of coffee of his own. She pulled her hand back watching how he closed the door behind him and breathed in the refresh scent of the morning. Andy had always loved mornings, too, but just for other reasons. In New York with morning had always come his work and with the work came the respect. He wasn't bitter, but boy things surely had changed

Turning to look at his daughter, Andy tilted his head. "I thought I might find you here", he said with an affectionate smile on his lips. Delia returned the smile hoping he wouldn't spot the sadness in her eyes. Usually he didn't. It wasn't because he didn't love her, but because he always assumed Delia had her life figured out. She didn't bother straightening the facts when everything was so much more easier like this. The last thing she wanted was her father to feel sorry for her.

"You know me and my habits, dad."

Andy let out a small, loving laugh and nodded. He sure did. Sitting next to Delia, he sipped his coffee before he said: "Your brother called me yesterday. You came so late I didn't have it in me to stay and wait for you."

"You're getting old, dad", she replied laughing.

Elbows on his knees, he leaned forward and glanced at her while playing with the mug in his hands. "Could be."

"So, what did Ephram say?" Delia's face was more serious now, though it still held a hint of amusement, "How's Maddie and the kids doing?"

How long had it been since she had last seen her brother? Delia couldn't spot the exact date; it felt like eternity. God, she missed him and his whole silly family so much that just thinking of them was bringing tears into her eyes. They had meant to come to Everwood last Christmas, but Elijah, their oldest son had had fever. Madison, who had become Mrs. Brown few years back, had wanted to come anyway but in the end, she had agreed with Ephram that it was best for their child to recover in his own bed.

Davy was their second child, born two years after Elijah. He had just turned 8 and as much as Delia had wanted to fly to New York to give him his present in person, she couldn't. Instead of going, she had sent him a DVD package with a long, long, long letter. Davy was just like his father in so many ways, only when Ephram's passion had always been manga and music, Davy's was movies and music. Violin, to be exact.

Then there was Mallory, their younger daughter aged 5 and she was the sweetest child Delia had ever met. Angelic, blonde curls she had gotten from her mother, no doubt about that one, but the blue-green eyes were definitely from her father. She reminded Delia of herself when she was little; maybe that was why she felt such a strong connection with the little one.

There was nothing wrong with Elijah either, though at times he still gave his father hard time. Although he didn't remember the time when his mother had given birth to him and taken care of him alone, he had heard about it more than it enough. He had heard how his father had stayed in Everwood with someone called _Amy_ and even though Madison had tried to explain his son that what had happened between her and Ephram, wasn't Ephram's fault, the boy refused to believe it. Someone had to be blamed. Things had just got worse now that he was becoming a real rebelling teenager and had to take out his frustration on someone.

"Earth to Delia? Honey, you haven't heard a word I've said, have you?" Andy's amused voice brought cut Delia's thoughts. "What? Oh, I'm sorry. I got lost in my thoughts."

"I noticed. Anyway, I was just saying that they're coming here, the whole lot." Andy couldn't help but notice how Delia's eyes lit the moment he said that. More and more often she sat home alone with a dark expression on her face when she thought there was no one there to witness it. Although, Andy had noticed she didn't spent that much time at home anymore. She was always somewhere. She said she was working, or at friends or somewhere, but too often she came home in a condition he didn't want her daughter to be in. So completely drunk that all she did was crawl into the toilet and stay there. Lately all her working hours had seemed to be after 20.00 too, which made him worry. She didn't want to talk about work at home, said she got enough of it as it was, and he had respected her. It didn't, however, stop him from worrying. There was only so much he could take and that limit was about to be crossed.

"Oh my god, when are they coming?" She sounded so excited, so glad that Andy's smile couldn't have been wider. "In a few days. They'll just sort out everything before they can come." Andy paused before he added, "You know, Ephram told me Bright's in town too."

Bright? Bright Abbott? Delia's eyebrow rose questioningly. "What, he is? Weird, no one's said anything to me." The Bright Abbott no one had seen for two, three years? Wow. She didn't blush anymore when someone mentioned his name, but she did feel the same old twinge hit her belly. He had been so in love with Bright for years and years when she had been younger. Bright had probably known about her childish crush, but had been too polite to tease her about it. Things had changed, she knew that, but still she felt somewhat embarrassed every time she heard someone talking about him. Bright had probably forgotten all about her anyway, so she didn't know what the big deal was, but still…

"Well I doubt it's any of your business, dear, so why would they have told you?" Andy noted and got up yawning. He was already late from work, but usually it didn't matter. If he wasn't there to take care of a little flu, Harold was. They did share a practice, did they not?

"In a place this small, everything's everyone's business, dad", Delia sighed before changing the subject, "have fun at work, will you?"

"Done. You too." He was already stepping over the threshold, when he stopped and cast a curious glance at her direction, "I take it your hours start before I come home but end after I've gone to bed?"

Delia nodded, laughing softly. "That's the way it goes."

* * *

The day had started nicely. Too bad it hadn't continued the same way. 

Bright sighed. Alright, fine, admittedly he was happy to see his friends again and appreciated the fact they had wanted to take him out to 'have fun' as they put it, but truth be told… it was the first day of his vacation and he had wanted to spent it with his family enjoying the peace and quiet. Actually, he had wanted to spent it just with Amy and Tiffany to be more exact. He had nothing but warm feelings for his parents, but Amy had always been the closest one to him. The one who had believed in him and supported him. And as for Tiffany, he adored his niece more than anything. He had wanted to talk with Amy, hear how she was doing and just be with her.

_You never get what you want, do you, Abbott?_ He shook his head as an answer to his own unspoken question.

Sad fact was, that it had been Amy who had said she would not let her brother rot inside the four walls when he should have been enjoying his time off. "You listen to me, bro, and listen good", she had said with an index finger pointing at him. Man, when had Amy grown so tall and scary? "You're going out even if I have to drag you out of this house and push you into the car. We have all the time we need to spent together as a family, but first you need to go out have some quality time with your gang, ok?"

How was he supposed to answer back to that? Hell, Amy had been very goal-directed. Kevin, one of his old team mates had called earlier. He had heard Bright had come home and wanted to gather the old bunch and do something 'mind-blowing' as he had said. When Bright had said he didn't feel like going out today, Amy had grabbed the phone and assured that Bright indeed _was _going out.

So, there he was. Out.

Weird thing was, Harold had also agreed with his daughter saying Bright should go meet his old friends that he hadn't seen for years. "You've worked too much son", he had said, "you look like you could use a break. So go, do your thing and have fun."

He tried to swallow the yawn, but someone caught it. "Come on, dog, cheer up", Kevin cried over the noise punching his arm, "check out the place, dude. Did you not notice there's half naked women dancing around the place?"

Oh yeah, he had noticed that. "It's looking good", he replied trying to sound as excited as the other guys were, but the simple truth was he wasn't. Please, he had seen naked women before. Enough for one life-time, really. It was a woman, well, women in general that he had escaped to home to begin with, so another pair of legs was hardly what he wanted to see. Still, he forced himself to look up to the stage just to make his friends feel better. He didn't want to seem all unappreciative since they meant well, after all, and it wasn't their fault he wasn't the same guy he used to be.

Some things change, some don't. Some people grow up… he glanced at his barking and whistling team mates… some people don't.

"The next show's my favorite", Timothy muttered gulping down his beer, "made us promise we won't tell anyone back home she's here." His eyes flashed with something one might have called lust as he continued speaking, "We gotta call her Dana when she's on stage though… says it's her show name. Doesn't want her daddy knowing about all this, I bet." The guys barked with laughter in unison. Something obviously amused them, Bright just didn't know what it was. What the hell had Timothy just said anyway?

The answer came very clear to him the minute his eyes moved to meet the dancing girl.

Say, wasn't that… he blinked, shocked… _Delia Brown?_

* * *

A/N: There goes our predictable chapter, but what happens after? Mwuahahhaahaha.


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: **For all the lovely reviews I humbly thank for. That's why I wrote two chapters in one day. BOOYA! ...The reason I'm updating this one only now, is that I forgot to update. BUT, since i updated my pretender fic, I figured this one needs an update too and there it was, already written chapter on my computer. Whoops? Short chapter, yes, but as I wrote it I was moving out and had no time but the one I stole... Sorry for that one.

**Disclaimer:** By now you should've had realized that they're not mine. Nope. Don't own the characters, just the ones my sick mind came up with. I cannot be hold responsible for anything that Delia or Bright does, because… because… they are NOT mine. AHA. Sue someone else then.

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Chapter 3

The first thing Bright could think of doing, was exactly what he ended up doing too. He jumped onto his feet and forced his way through the crowd towards the stage not even bothering to apologize to the ones he shove aside. He didn't know if Delia had recognized him already, but the time he reached the dancing girl her eyes were so wide that he assumed the answer was 'yes'. She stopped moving the moment she saw him and just stood there on the edge of the stage, holding the steel bar with one hand for support and did nothing but stared at him in shock.

It could not be happening! Delia wanted to spun around and run away, but not a single muscle acted on her mind's demands. Her feet were glued to the floor.

The audience was booing at her and begging her to continue the show, but she was completely oblivious of them, almost as if they hadn't even been there at all. To her they really weren't. There was nothing else but a guy that unmistakably looked like Bright Abbott and she… and her misery.

Reaching up, Bright grabbed her by the arm and pulled the stunned girl down into his arms. Grabbing her waist, he pulled her closer almost as if he was trying to block the drooling looks she received. The men around them were getting nervous and extremely worried that the show would not continue any time soon and few of them were already approaching them with caution. But since Delia didn't look to be harmed anyway, they didn't do anything just yet.

"What the hell are you doing?" Delia breathed out, returning to this world. When the realization of what had happened hit her, she pushed him farther away from her with all her might but he, however, didn't let go.

"What am I doing? What are _you_ doing?" Why did he sound so mad? Delia couldn't tell and neither could Bright. All he knew was that if this had been Amy, it was what he would have wanted Ephram to do. To stop her from making a complete fool out of herself and drag her out of there no matter what! The grip got only tighter and tighter. It was obvious he was not letting go willingly.

"Bright, let go of me, you're hurting me!" She let out a whimper trying to struggle free, but his hand stayed where they were. She was panicking; what in the world was Bright doing there? Why had he pulled her out of the stage like that, in front of all those people?

"Not gonna happen, Delia." As if the humiliation wasn't huge enough, he was talking to her like to a bad-behaving child!

"D, are you ok?"

Forcing his eyes off the girl, Bright looked to his side only to see a man standing next to him. Obviously, he was one of the gorillas, so to speak, with one and one job only; to keep the girls safe. Should he have been thankful for the fact there was someone there to keep an eye on them? Probably, but he wasn't. In fact, all he wanted to do was to punch the guy straight to face for letting Delia do something as disgusting as this.

Not that there were anything wrong with strippers and such… Bright had always found them very, very interesting personalities and so on… but this was about Delia Brown.

"She's fine", he spat out finally releasing the struggling girl. Delia had to bite her bottom lip to keep herself from crying. _Dear God._ This was definitely as low as it could get, no doubt about that one. She was tougher than this for crying out loud! She had taken insults and slaps on the butt, she had swallowed nasty comments about her 'profession' and all that crap, she had done without a single tear. Why was it that seeing Bright's angry, disgusted face made her feel worse than any of those things ever had? She looked away ready to break into tears.

_Damn you Delia, don't you dare to cry because of this!_ With that, she got part of her self-control back.

"I didn't ask you, did I?" The man growled grabbing Bright's shoulder ready to guide him out of the club, but that was when Delia finally came around.

"No it's fine, Jack - _I'm_ fine", she said swallowing hard and lifted her gaze up to meet the man's eyes. Bright turned to look at her again causing Delia immediately to wrap her arms around her upper-body. She felt so… well, naked for one and completely defenseless.

People around them were getting even more restless. She had to get out of there, away from the curious eyes. There was already another girl dancing, finishing her act, but to some people their little argument seemed much more interesting. "Is it ok if I go home, Jack? I'll do double tomorrow, ok?"

She sounded so weak, so unlike Delia Brown. This wasn't Delia, this was someone that had taken over her body and mind, Bright decided. Simply, she was out of her goddamn mind. "The hell you will", Bright cut in angrily, "You're not coming back here."

"Just who do you think you are, telling me what to do and what not?" Delia snarled, angry. Her eyes were shooting flares at his direction, but he didn't seem to mind. _Son of a bitch!_ Delia was more than angry – she was furious. The guy was nothing to him; not a family member, not a lover, not even a friend! Only someone from her past! Who had give him the rights to butt into her life without any kind of invitation? Absolutely no one! Just because she had had one lousy crush on him _millions_ of years ago, he had no rights or reason to act like that!

"You know this airhead?" The man called Jack questioned looking highly unpleased. Well, Bright wasn't that pleased either. He was glaring at the man next to him and for a second, Delia thought he'd attack Jack. Thank God, he didn't.

"Do you!"

Oh boy, did she know him or what? "Unfortunately", she hissed trying to keep her voice low. Her reply made his anger fade away and its place was taken by amusement. She was mad at him and though he knew she had every right to kick him in the groin, which he hoped she wouldn't do though, the situation amused him. This by far was not what his friends had meant by 'having fun', was it? 'Mind-blowing' it at least was.

Delia was only further annoyed by his obvious amusement. The guy was just unbelievable!

"Then go home, D, I'll solve this with Mac", Jack sighed rubbing his nose. He was sick and tired of these girls disobeying the one simple rule. You do not mess with the clients and you do not let your lovers enter the place. It was really that simple and yet, every week someone managed to break either one of the two rules. Or both. "You show up tomorrow and we'll talk. Just take this idiot boyfriend of yours with you, alright?"

What, wait, no! She looked both shocked and horrified. Jack was getting it totally wrong and _that_ could cost her a lot. A lot being her whole work! "I'm not-"

"Just get him out of here, now", Jack demanded before she could finish the sentence. Bright just stood there by her side not saying a word to straighten up the mistake. Of course it was wrong for him to take pleasure out of Delia's misery, but she sure as hell deserved it after the little show of hers. Just what would Ephram say if he found out about this? Was that really why he had flipped?

"I don't want to see him here ever again. Work and pleasure don't mix, D, you know the rules." Before Delia could even attempt to explain further, he was already gone leaving Delia there to stand with maliciously smiling Bright.

_Shit._ She took a deep breathe trying to calm herself down before facing Bright again. When she was ready to turn her gaze to meet his, the look on his face made her snort. _What an asshole!_

She took a deep breathe trying to calm herself down before facing Bright again. When she was ready to turn her gaze to meet his, the look on his face made her snort. 

"Leave. I'm getting changed and thanks to you, I probably won't get paid tonight. I don't want to see you again." She was serious. She never ever wanted to relive the shame and humiliation she was feeling right that moment. What if he told Andy what his daughter had been doing? Goddamnit!

"I don't care what you want", he stated folding his arms, "I'm taking you home and that's final."


	5. Chapter 4

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A/N: The reviews have truly kicked my butt, thanks for them. It's always and I mean ALWAYS good to know some other people than my imaginary fans are really reading what I write, so. The last chapter was short for which I'm sorry, but as said, I was moving out (and now I have! Wohoo) so I didn't really have time to write. The little time I had, I practically stole, heh.

Sigh. I don't know if I should have, _you know, _higher rated chapter here at some point, something like MA (it's nc-17-alike isn't it?). You guys tell me, heh.

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Chapter 4

Delia marched into the changing room slamming the door behind her shut rather angrily. There was no one else in the room which meant there was no one witnessing her burst of anger, either, which she noted appreciatively. Walking to her spot, she grabbed her bag throwing it on the floor, kicked it twice, and then sat on the chair where the bag had been a minute ago. She breathed in, only once, before her arms collapsed onto the make-up table and her forehead on them. Finally, she exhaled.

She didn't move for a couple of minutes, but only laid there cursing Bright without really saying anything. Insults towards the man, however, filled her head almost too loudly for her to even think of anything.

"God, life sucks", she whined against her arms with closed eyes, wishing that when she opened them again, she'd notice that it had all been a bad dream. Everything, her whole life including. She felt like a teenager again. Like a teenager who's boyfriend had just witnessed her doing something embarrassing, like peeing, for example. Of course, now that she was older she understood how that was one of the most natural things human body did or could ever do, but when she had been younger, it'd been a disaster if a guy had accidentally overheard you while you were in the bathroom. All the sudden, she was that teenager again. In _that_ bathroom.

"That doesn't look to me like you'd be changing." Delia's head shot up immediately. Turning around on her seat, she saw Bright stepping over the threshold and closing the door. With a dropped jaw, she could only watch him step closer before he stopped with crossed arms. When the hell had he opened the door and just how long had he been standing there, watching her welter in her thoughts?

Had she already mentioned what a goddamn bastard he was?

"What are you doing here?" She hissed, eyes narrowing. It was one for the guy to show up in _her_ club, but a completely another for him to bust into _her_ changing room! He had no manners, whatsoever. Boy, Bright really hadn't changed during the years, now had he?

As if he had been waiting for her to finish her thought, he answered only after a pause. "Making sure you don't run through the backdoor, that's all." She snorted in disgust. "Now, will you get dressed that we can get out of this craphole?"

She had every right in the world to bad-mouth her shitty workplace, but he didn't! She stood up, hands on her hips not bothering to cover her half-naked front anymore. Partly because of fury, partly because of pure defiance. Bright had been ladies' man from kindergarten as far as she knew, so seeing little Delia Brown in her underwear hardly made his knees weak. Only, it did.

Not instantly of course. First there was the familiar jolt of electricity shooting through his body and only then the weird feeling was born in the pit of his stomach, moving down onto his knees. _Come on, she's the one and only little sister of your best friend!_ He swallowed. Yeah, so what? Wasn't like his body parts ever asked his permission to _feel_ something…

"I am not leaving with you, Abbott", she stated with perfectly calm, but cold voice while there was nothing cold in her eyes. They were bolting. Since when had she been using his last name, eh? He frowned slightly. Bright was somewhat sure she had never _ever_ used it before and so it felt both highly amusing and… well, provocative for one.

"You know what your brother would do to me if he found out I left you in a place like this?" He questioned, telling himself it _was_ the real reason behind his reaction. Was it? He couldn't help but add; "Looking like that?"

If Delia hadn't wanted to smack him before, now she most definitely did. The way he looked at her in disgust… she hated it. _Hated_ it. But her counter-remark didn't take more than a second to form. "What's wrong with the way I look?" She shot back, "Obviously, if you didn't like it, you wouldn't be in a place like this now would you?"

The arrow had nailed its target. You could tell it by the way his eyes got darker and his jaw tensed. He wasn't amused anymore. So, was it her problem the guy had some serious issues with temper? "Delia", he let out huskily, but she hurried to interrupt him before he could say anything else.

"Look, maybe you feel it's like a duty of yours or something", she spoke. She wasn't really that angry at him anymore, maybe she thought she understood why he had reacted the way he had. Bright doubted it. "Fine, I had a one tiny little crush on you years ago and I'm sure it's why you're acting like this."

Bright laughed, only inside. Exactly what he had been telling himself… with a failure, naturally. No, it wasn't that.

Delia however didn't notice how the amused spark had returned his gaze, but only kept babbling her defense. "Big deal, I grew out of it and you don't have to feel like you should take care of me just because of that. I mean, so what if you happen to be Ephram's manager and his best friend? This is my life. Mine, ok? I can do whatever I want, I'm not a child anymore." She ended her ramble with a casual, almost apologizing shrug.

__

No, he thought, letting his eyes brush over her well-trained body, _definitely not a child anymore, Delia._

Both the silent moment and his intense stare got Delia on second thoughts about the way she looked at that very moment. She turned around to grab her blouse from the back of the chair and put it on. She hated using her on-duty-underwear as Katie called them, but there was no chance in hell she'd take them off with him standing there. She was defiant, alright, but not _that_ defiant. Yet. So instead, she let it go this once and pulled her jeans and jacket on while at it.

Turning back to him, she realized Bright was still observing her every move with the weirdest look in his eyes. She couldn't quite read it, but honestly, did she even want to?

Tossing her long hair over her shoulder to gain an extra second to think, she cleared her throat. "Are you going to stand there for the rest of the evening? Hope not, because you're on my way." Having said that, she grabbed her bag and moved closer to walk pass him. Only, she didn't get far when a firm grip took a hold of her arm, preventing her from moving.

"As I said", he reminded, sending creeps all the way down to her spine, "I'm driving you home."

Looking at him, she freed herself with one single, somewhat violent tug. This time, he let go but didn't take his eyes of her. If she wasn't going to take his message in by words, he would be forced to make it happen by using other ways, then.

"I have a car." It was the first thing her foggy mind had come up with. Plus, it was a total lie and they both knew it.

He didn't even have to say it. The look she received made it very clear to her anyway.

"Fine, I don't have a car", she gave in whining, "But I'm not going with you. I'm taking the bus."

Bright let out a laugh. He had the nerve to see something amusing about the situation, didn't he? Of course he did. He was Bright Abbott, after all. "God, Delia, you're making this really, really hard on yourself, you know?" He sounded amused too. But also frustrated.

Why the hell couldn't he just give up and leave? Why did he have to add her embarrassment by staying there? She didn't need anyone to save her, not from anything – why couldn't he see it? Why was he trying to run to her rescue when it wasn't needed? Besides, if Ephram had found out that Bright had known about Delia's untold job, and tried to kick his friend's butt, Bright would've won the skinny man, anyway. So why did he bother?

"How hard can it be to let me drive you home?" He asked with a deep, disbelieving frown. For sure, this was the first time he had to lure the girl into his car… "You'll be home sooner than by a bus and it'll be much for comfortable."

"Speak for yourself, Abbott."

…No, _for sure_, it was the first time even the luring didn't seem to work. If it went down the chosen path, he would end up carrying a kicking Delia Brown into his car. It would've been easier for him to let it go, yes. But Delia had, without knowing it, slapped him across the face with a shiny, white glove, challenging him into a battle that he intended to win. Why? He wasn't sure.

"You want me to make another scene in the middle of the club, get some local paper writing about it and make your dear dad find out about your job like that?"

__

If luring doesn't work, Bright thought bitterly, _try blackmailing. _Yes, he had actually stoop that low… but funnily enough, the protesting sparkle in her eyes seemed to be fading.

"Fine", she sighed as her shoulders collapsed in defeat. Strangely, he felt very, very pleased with himself having won the mental battle. "Drive me home you son of a bitch."

He opened the door and as a gentlemen, he let her step into the hallway first. "Just what would your father say if he heard you use that kind of language?" He asked maliciously, following Delia towards the back-door.

"Trust me, he's heard worse", she shot over her shoulder and added as a clarification, "You weren't exactly here when I had my teenage-phase."

A rather unneeded clarification had that one been. True, he hadn't been there in person, but he had heard all the ridiculous stories through Ephram and Madison. Still, till the day on hand, he had never been quite able to believe them all because they just didn't sound like Delia. He had been in Everwood every once in a while, but honestly, he had never ran into Andy's youngest kid for the embarrassed girl had obviously avoided him with every way possible. Amused, he realized it was probably what she was going to keep on doing from now on for the rest of her life.

"Funny", he started, coming over his thoughts, "I could swear you're still going through it."

As noticed, she was a fast-thinker and it only took a split second for her to reply. "Funny, I could say the same about you."

He could've laughed at her words as they exited the club through the backdoor. He could've chuckled and let it go by as a joke. But he didn't. Taking the lead and guiding her around the corner, towards the busy street where his car had been left, he only commented: "And if you did say that, I'd be forced to admit that you're right, Delia."

Now that, she hadn't expected to hear. Laughing, yes, rejecting words, yes, grumpy silence even if it didn't fit Bright's profile, yes. A witty remark, most definitely so. But a sentence said with that kind of honesty… no. Just, no.

He could tell her confusion by the way her steps got a new pace. Suddenly she walked slower, probably without even noticing it. He adjusted his own steps to match hers, so they were walking side by side down the street but still, he let her lead the way. Of course, they were walking into the wrong direction as the girl didn't have the foggiest idea where his car was, but he didn't say it out loud. Maybe this, a peaceful moment between the two, was what he needed at the moment.

"You're not telling Ephram, are you?" She questioned suddenly, tucking her hands into the jacket's pockets' and waiting for his reply. Even though the only reason she was talking with a tone that sweet, was because she wanted a 'no' as an answer, it felt good for a change. It had been so long since Bright had last talked with Delia… she had been 15 or so the last time, hadn't she? Yes, it was that summer that Ephram had accidentally found out just who it was that Delia had a crush on and being a male, blurted it out into the open in the middle of a get-together dinner. Bright, who had been there too with his girlfriend, had been able to do nothing else but stare as the young Brown girl had excused herself, got up, poked Ephram's shoulder with a fork before sending it against the wall and dashed upstairs slamming a door shut forcefully after her. In fact, that had been the last time he had seen her face to face.

"Are you?" Now she looked at him, eager to get the kind of answer she wanted to hear but fearing she wouldn't. There was a shadow on her face, darkening her soft features and making her look a lot older than… Bright had to count. What was she? 20?

"Are you?" The third time, she got her reply. "No", he said, turning to look the street in front of him.

Like most girls after hearing good news, she didn't jump up and down clapping her hands. Nor did she giggle like Bright usually witnessed them doing. She let out a breath she had been holding, relieved. "Thank you."

"The least I can do… " He started, "But there's this one little thing, _D." _The devil in his eyes was back in the game and ready to fight dirtier than ever. Delia, who had already thought she was out of the hook, raised an eyebrow questioningly, not daring to ask. She had her suspicions.

"Come on, D, don't you want to know?" From where came this need to tease her, he didn't know, but it was there alright. Loud and clear, making it impossible for him to shut up or change the tone of his voice. For that, Delia would probably take of her shoe and smack him in the nose with it.

"Don't call me that."

He gave her a smile, with a hinting quirk of eyebrow. "You didn't mind them calling you D."

"I'm off-duty, as you can see", Delia answered matter-of-factly, "See, I'm wearing clothes. _Off-duty._" She pressurized the last word to make her point more obvious.

"That's just it, D, I want you stay off-duty." He had said it without thinking it more, but it pretty much summoned up what was going inside his head. Be it for Ephram, or for whatever reason, he didn't want Delia going back that place. Why, that didn't matter.

Delia stopped walking and turned to face him. With a confused frown, she waved her hands in front of his face as if to block the meaning of the words out. "Wait a minute. Wait. A. Minute."

His face was serious, but the hint of amusement was there in his voice as she clearly heard. "All I'm saying is-"

__

Yes, I know what you're saying! Delia knew it, but couldn't believe it. "-That I should quit my job just because you have issues with me being Ephram's sister?" She finished his sentence fiercely.

"That", he admitted, "and the fact I don't want you working in a place like that. You know, if you have to strip, at least pick a classier place." Then just to annoy her beyond the limits, he raised his hand and pointed the direction from where they had just come from. "And by the way, my car's that way."

She made a sound that sounded very much like a growl, before she stated: "You're an idiot, Abbott." Without warnings, she turned to the _right_ direction and started walking not caring if he followed or not.

He did, naturally. "Always been. Didn't stop you from liking me."

It made her stop again and spun around on her heels. Obviously, even though she didn't want to admit it, that was still a soft spot of hers. He noted it with great pleasure. "That's thin ice you're walking on if you go down with that one. Get over it", she demanded.

"I have", he said. Had he? Of course! "The point of this whole thing is, that if you don't quit that job, I'm telling."

Delia shook her head, letting out a sarcastic laugh before she spoke. "You don't get it, Bright, do you? I need this job."

Why? What could be so important that she had to make a fool out of herself for it? "Why, tell me why, Delia? Your dad is married to money." Maybe that was a bit evil of him to say it, but it was true. Andy Brown was the richest man in Everwood, even though he didn't really operate as a surgeon anymore, only occasionally. "How can you need money so badly that you do something like that to get it?"

People walking by them gave them weird looks, but neither one of them really registered those. "I have my reasons, ok?" She sounded so weird. Different. Desperate, pleading. "I did something stupid and… I need to make it up."

His interest woke up right away, of course. Delia Brown had done something that her father would not approve if he found out, hadn't she? And to cover it up, she had taken a job her father… would also not approve. Interesting method. "Your dad doesn't know about that stupid thing you did, does he?"

At first she thought of denying it just for the heck of it. But before she went and said anything idiotic, she realized she couldn't lie. Truth was the only way out of this situation, a half of it, anyway. "No", she admitted and looked away to collect some strength before facing his piercing eyes again, "and he doesn't have to know. I've been a disappointment big enough without it. I need this money, just few months and I'm done."

Why was she explaining? She didn't need to explain _anything_ to him! Bright Abbott was just a nosy guy that thought it was funny to torment her. _Don't tell him, Delia, you'll regret it._

"What did you do?" Bright wanted to know, just like she had expected, but following the only rational thought in her mind right now, she snorted refraining.

"Oh, as if I'd give you another weapon to use against me. Dream on." She turned around again and started moving but didn't get that far when she again felt his fingers wrap around her arm, putting an end to her escape. "That way, my car's there", he said, gesturing towards the other side of the street. Delia said nothing, only walked to the pointed direction with Bright on her heels.

"Come on."

"No", she said, crossing the street. Stopping to let a car cut her path for a moment, she added without looking over her shoulder; "But trust me, I need this money."

He thought about it for a minute. After crossing the road, he took the lead again and this time they actually did en up to his car. Or rather, his father's car. The gang had of course been against the idea of Bright driving, but he hadn't taken a 'no' so. The guys would just have to find another way to get home. If he said he had hooked up with a gorgeous stripper they'd probably forgive him… but then, they had seen him pulling Delia down from the stage and making a scene in public, hadn't they? So, he couldn't exactly say that he had hooked up… He couldn't help but smile to himself. They were probably still sitting there, confused and wondering what the hell had just happened. And frankly, he didn't give rat's ass about them.

"This would go faster if you'd just let me in the car", Delia snapped returning Bright from his thoughts. Pulling his keys out of his pocket and unlocking the locks by pressing the button on the remote, he finally said: "Fine. I give you a month."

Delia opened the door, got in the car and waited for Bright to sit behind the wheel. "You give me a month?" She questioned after he started the car. Bright wasn't saying what she thought he was, no was he?

"Yeah, that's right", he said, feeding the boiling sensation of rage that had yet again started to bubble somewhere in the pit of her stomach.

"I'm gonna be around for a month. A whole month, Delia, me and you in the same little town", he pointed out. Delia made a face. Torture. "And by the end of this month, you resign."

Say that again? Delia stared at him. He really had the nerves to tell her what to do? Even after what he had done, he thought he could actually get what he wanted? What did he want, anyway? Just to drive her insane? "You can't do this. You can't control me."

"No", he agreed smiling, "but I can blackmail you. I'm doing it for you, so you know, for your best interest." Yes, that's right. _For her own good._ Somehow, even he didn't buy it. Alright, so maybe he did have some other reasons for doing it, but… he cast a glance to his side. Yeah, as she had so kindly pointed out, Delia Brown wasn't a child anymore. Nope. There was a beautiful, young woman sitting on the seat next to his. A young woman that he felt he should protect. He had always liked the girl, he had liked her even more when Ephram had told all those horror stories. It was natural he didn't want her making an ass out of her, wasn't it? Simply, because he cared about her.

"Yeah, sure, if that's how you justify it to yourself", she muttered and for a moment, Bright wasn't sure if he had spoken his thoughts out loud. He hadn't. Good.

"Look. You have a month to get the money you need. I'm sure you can find some other-"

It was when Delia cut in again. "I already have three jobs, Abbott. This one fitted with my working hours."

A fading hint of sympathy washed over him, but it dried out soon enough. "Doesn't matter. If you don't get out of that place in a month, I'll be telling your dad a nice little story. And your brother", he said, pausing to take a deep breath. "And he'll kill me for letting you do it, you know, but I'm prepared to face it. If it's my time to go, then I'll go."

Delia wasn't staring at him anymore. She let her back sank against the seat and glanced out of the window. "Humor ain't helping."

"Wrong, it's helping me", Bright declared, "Do we have a deal, Delia?"

The way she saw it, she didn't really have much options left. She could go and try her luck, but somehow she was sure Bright wasn't playing with her. For some ridiculous reason it seemed to be important for him to 'do the right thing' for her. Really, it was just about Bright beating her. That's the way it always was with guys. She had learnt that already. Always needed to be in control.

"Asshole. Do I have a chance?"

"No."

Muttering few carefully selected curses underneath her breath, she shrugged. "There you go. Fine. You have your deal. But you know, if I have to go out and become a prostitute to get money, you can only blame yourself."

As she glanced to see his face, the only thing she could see was a promise. "Don't worry. I'd buy you all to myself."

And funny thing was, she didn't doubt it. At all.


	6. Chapter 5

****

A/N: Review and the sooner you'll see what happens next, mwuahaha. Nah, would like to know what you think of the story so far, is all. If flamers out there feel the need to flame, do that. I could not care less. You suck and frankly, that is your problem, not mine. HA.

** **

Chapter 5

"Delia", impatient voice called through the locked bedroom door, accompanied by a loud and equally impatient knock. It was the 7th time Delia heard it and also, the 7th time she coldly ignored it too. Why couldn't the other girl just take the gentle hint and nicely put, fuck off? But no. The blonde-haired girl sighed rolling her eyes, but didn't give up and knocked again. She had made plans for the night and Delia sure as hell would not ruin them! "You can't not go out forever, girl, you're gonna have to face the sucker sooner or later."

Oh really? _Watch me._ "Later, then. I'll be out after a month", snorted Delia, sitting on her bed and quite obviously, sulking. The picture of Bright's amused smile as the irritated girl had stormed out of his car yesterday night was still fresh on her mind and she wasn't going to live through that embarrassment ever again. She hadn't spoken him a single word during the ride to home, hadn't even thanked him for the lift. Of course not. He had forced her to get into the car! What was there to thank for? Bright was an ass and she had every intention not to see him ever again. She wouldn't give a situation like that a chance to occur: Delia had decided to stay far away from Bright and pretend that yesterday was only a bad, bad, bad dream. Something that had never happened, or at least, wasn't to be taken seriously.

Gods how she wished that was the case. Delia had called the club earlier, but Jack had only said that her _services _weren't needed for a few days or so and that she could come back next week. Her services weren't needed! He hadn't said why, but Delia didn't even need to ask – because of what had happened yesterday, of course. Few days and people would hopefully forget. They had to. As she had repeatedly said to Bright, she really did need the money the job brought. Bad publicity was something Mac didn't like; girls disobeying his rules were always fired as an example and as far as Delia understood, Jack had thought Bright was her… you know. And if Jack thought it was so, then Mac probably thought so too and they wouldn't give her a chance to explain. Wasn't their style… but then, if Mac had wanted to fire her, Jack would've told it to her already.

Either way, Delia wasn't going to quit her job any time soon unless they threw her out themselves. Well, she needed the money, as said, and… of course, she wouldn't quit because she wasn't going to do something Bright had _told_ her to do! She'd find a way to make him forget the deal; even if she needed to play as dirty as Bright had to make it happen. It was weird how much she was ready to risk to get what she wanted; even the thought of telling her father had crossed her mind too, but that one she had abandoned as an impossible equation. All she had to do was imagine what her father would say, how disappointed he would be and she knew it wasn't worth it. Bright wasn't worth it.

"Come on, D."

Hearing her friend, Jillian, use the nickname her workmates had given, and the one Bright had used to get under her skin, made Delia feel like someone had kicked her in the tummy. For the shortest time, the air was somewhere out of reach and she had to gasp for breath. She didn't want to hear anyone call her that anymore. Why? Bright had made it sound so… disgusting, somehow. Pathetic and despicable. "Don't call me that, Jill."

"What, you prefer Dana then?" Jill asked, aggravated. She had been waiting for an hour already and was getting more and more annoyed by every second. At that point, Delia remembered why she hadn't wanted to tell the girl about her job in the first place. When her friend got annoyed, she had the nasty habit to take it out on people around her with such ways that most of the time, they all just wanted to smack her. Of course, maybe Delia had deserved that one particular shot, but still.

During times like this, she truly missed Ariel who was the kindest and sweetest person she had ever met and who always knew how to make her feel a bit better. But being pregnant and in a happy relationship, she rarely left the safety of their little flat anymore and Delia had been forced to find other people with whom to party. Jillian was one of those.

Delia wasn't sure how was it possible for one become friends with someone who she had never really liked that much, but it had happened. Jillian had just been there and step by step they had started to spend more and more time together, partying, having fun, creating chaos. Just like they had done when they had been teenagers. Now Delia remembered again why it was that she had slowly let their so called friendship fade when she had been no more than 14 years old. She had been better judge of character back then, hadn't she?

"Come on, Delia, they're waiting for us. You got time off, why not use it? I mean, your brother ain't coming till tomorrow, right? And I doubt you're gonna run into that one asshole at Joe's party. You know they're always private." Jill, she had always been good with talking people around, changing their minds. Manipulating. It was the way she spoke. When she wanted something, she knew what had to be done to make it happen. Delia knew this, but didn't care.

She got up and walked to the door, unlocked it and pushed it open to let the relieved girl enter her room. Maybe Jill was right. Maybe she really should go out and have fun, forget Bright and his stupid threats even if it was just for one night. It was a private party, as Jill had said, and there was no chance in hell she'd meet him there, right?

"Fine, I'm coming", she said finally, sighing. What other options did she really have? She could stay in her room, behind the locked door and mope, but knowing Jill she wouldn't give up until the next morning. Probably not even then. Yeah, things always had to go her way.

"Good", the other girl replied, "thank God I didn't have to bitch-slap some sense to you."

---

When the girls arrived to the party few moments later, Delia couldn't help but think it had been a very bad idea from the beginning and that she should've gone with her original plan. Yep, she should've stayed home and pouted. Weird how she had seemed to grow out of stuff she had once loved to do.

As always, the house was filled with drunken people, loud music and couples sucking each others insides out but only this time, it annoyed her. Normally she felt completely comfortable wearing Jillian's denim mini-skirt and green strapless top that revealed more than it covered, but now she felt awkward. If it had been last week, she would've been feeling the mood. She would've, in fact, been one of those girls dancing on the table with a bottle of beer in their hands and no doubt, would she have made a complete fool out of herself once more.

It was all Bright's fault. No matter how she tried to walk away from the subject, she always ended up crashing against it. It was Bright that had killed her mood by making it seem he was above her. Better than her. So what if he had managed to get himself a real life outside the mini-sized area called Everwood? So what if he had a decent job and money with what to do whatever he liked to do? Just because he lived his life to the fullest, didn't mean everyone could. Some people had responsibilities. Mistakes to correct.

Why did she feel guilty?

"Delia, please", Jilliian's pleading voice shouted to her ear, "get that look off your face. Forget him, ok?"

Delia only cast a biting glance to her friend's direction, before morphing the glare something softer. "I wasn't thinking of him", she replied hastily and continued screening through the crowd, hoping that Jillian hadn't noticed the lie. Jillian being herself, she didn't. The fake smile that Delia had drawn on her lips a split second ago seemed to convince her and without continuing that particular subject, the girl grabbed Delia's arm.

"Okay then", she spoke with the usual cheerful, but suggestive tone, "let's go see if we see anyone do-able."

For the first time, Delia didn't like the idea, but followed Jillian nevertheless with the same fake smile still decorating her face. What was the worse thing that could happen? Seriously? If she was lucky, she'd get a beer during the much-needed tour around the house and get drunk.

And the best part was, for a short period of time at least, she could forget.

* * *

It was 3m and Bright couldn't sleep. So instead of even trying to sleep, which he knew would not help, he was sitting in the living-room, drinking a glass of milk like he always did when everything wasn't all peachy. It was somewhat normal for him - not to be able to sleep, that is, but usually he knew why the insomnia was bothering him. The amount of work he had to do to keep his clients happy was the main cause really, but now that Kathy McGillian, his partner in crime had promised to take care of the minor issues, he had no reason to worry. There was no such issue he could not solve by simply using his cell-phone… so what was it?

He had tried to sleep. He had, honestly. But when the image of Delia Brown in her… work outfit… smiling sexily, gesturing him to approach had flashed through his head, he had woke up gasping for air. It was ridiculous when you thought of it. It wasn't like Delia was the first half-naked female he had seen and yet, she had seemed to have the kind of effect on him that no one ever had. He had felt something, something else than bitter lust. What the hell was up with that one?

Somehow he had never believed the word sexy would apply to the youngest Brown sibling, and it felt absolutely weird to realize how wrong one could be. How wrong _he_ could be.

Suddenly he was startled by his sister's voice coming from behind him. "So, are you ever going to tell what happened last night?"

He didn't bother glancing over his shoulder for Amy was already walking closer and sat down on the sofa next to her brother. Now he gave a hesitating glance over to her direction, but the demanding look on her face made him look away.

"What? Nothing happened." Fine, something had happened… but nothing _important_. Right?

"HA", Amy shot. "Don't try that on me. Your friends specifically told me you found some nice brunette and took of with her."

He groaned. Only so natural for his friends and sister to gossip on the phone about him and his life, huh? He wasn't sure when Amy had become such a good deal with his old friends as she obviously had, but he suspected it was somewhere during the time he had moved to New York and left his old life behind him. "Oh yeah? What else did those suckers tell you?"

Amy sighed and rolled her eyes, defeated. "Nothing. Wouldn't even tell me where you were. Should I be worried?"

To that he chuckled. At least those old dogs knew what to tell and what not. In the end, Amy was his little sister and didn't need to know about all the sins that the boys threw on his face. "Not more than usually."

Amy wasn't sure how to take in Bright's words. When they had been younger, Bright had been a real pain in the ass. A guy that always fell in troubles way no matter what he did. And whenever that happened, he had tried to fish his way out of the situation by using his charm and perfect smile. After what had happened with Colin… He never blamed others, but never took the blame on his own shoulders either. It was so much easier to stay in-between it all and let adults and teachers alike make their own assumptions. But Amy knew he had grown. Grown to be more mature… so maybe that was why what she had been told both amused and worried her. Mainly worried.

Had the old Bright Abbott come back the minute he had come to Everwood? "So is it true?

Bright didn't really need advanced math to figure out what she meant. A wild guess was all he needed. "That I found a brunette and took of with her?" He asked, a bit amused. Well, it was amusing she still felt the need to baby sit after him even though he was supposed to be the big brother.

Amy, however, didn't seem to be that amused. He didn't get why, though. She had had such a great sense of humor once. What had happened to her? In labour, had she not only pushed a baby out of her body, but all that was left of her humor, too? Then again, he wasn't really amused either. There was nothing amusing in Delia in her underwear… and that was the exact picture that swept past his mind every other second.

"Yeah."

"Part of it", he replied truthfully, "But I don't want to talk about it."

Amy wasn't ready to drop the subject, of course. "But-"

"Amy, I'm serious", he interrupted her. If it was any other girl he had encountered, he could've told. Even though it sort of freaked him out having his friends chatting about his life with Amy, he had always told her everything. But this time it wasn't his secret he would have been telling. It was Delia's.

"Fine", the girl sighed, not arguing more. If Bright had decided not to share that particular piece of information with her, there was nothing she could've done to change his mind.

"So tell me sis, has life been treating you any better here?"

What it tried to be, was a smooth change of subject, but what they both knew it to be was a lame one. Still, she didn't mention it. "Yeah. If you're worried whether I've gone back to the old routes, don't worry, I haven't. I got over Ephram a long time ago."

Ah, there it was again. A picture of Delia in front of his eyes. He shook it off by simply saying: "Funny you should mention him… He called me earlier, told he's coming to town."

Maybe it was a bit evil of him to tell it to Amy like this, but then, it would've been more evil of him to let Amy find out by bumping into him and Madison in the store or something. So, no, of course it wasn't just a perfect way to distract her mind from things he didn't want her thinking about. "Town town? Everwood town?"

"Everwood", he confirmed. The look in Amy's eyes was unreadable, but Bright was somewhat sure his words had had some sort of hidden reaction. Amy had not got over Ephram no matter how often she said she had. God, he only wished she'd find a good, decent guy and forget Ephram for good. While he felt sorry for his little sister, he was happy for his friend and at some level, that made it very difficult situation for him. Still… The way Amy had kept toying with the boy after they had met… well, Ephram deserved to be happy. And he was happy with Madison. If Amy had any intentions whatsoever to go and poke their relationship, she would not get away with it.

"It must be a virus", Amy spoke sounding as normal as ever. "Coming home and all." Her voice didn't even so much as tremble. Boy, she was such a good actress, wasn't she? _Or maybe,_ Bright thought, _she has gotten over Ephram and I'm just not giving her the credit she deserves?_

"Wouldn't call it that", he said, breaking out from this thoughts, "Anyway. You know what Amy, you think you could borrow your car? I don't feel like taking dad's again…"

Amy's eyebrow rose. "Why?" What on Earth was Bright going to do with her car this time of night?

"Why borrow or why not take his?"

Amy rolled her eyes. Bright and his humor. A deadly combination. "Why borrow?"

"I dunno", he replied shrugging. "Wanna get out for a little while. I'll take a ride around the town, clear up my head and come back." It was the truth. Maybe driving around a bit would help him sort his thoughts and he could actually go back to bed without thinking about _her_.

Amy, who naturally knew nothing about his new problem, assumed it was the _old_ problem bothering him. The look on his face was a clear sign of female-issues, she had learnt to recognize it. "That Nicki bitch you mentioned still giving you hard time?"

It took awhile before he could bring himself to answer. "Yeah, she's the one." It was a pure lie of course, but a much easier way out of her interrogation than the truth. Besides, maybe it was Nicki's fault. It was because of her sudden burst he had figured that coming to Everwood might not be such a bad idea. He had been wrong, hadn't he?

---

15 minutes later, Bright was already sitting in Amy's car fully clothed and driving around the empty streets. Being Everwood, it seemed there wasn't a single soul out there at this time of night, just some drunken youngsters running around the streets doing stupid stuff… the thought brought a smile to his lips almost instantly. Sometimes he even missed his youth. The days, or rather, nights he walked around the little town with his friends, doing insane stuff and simply, enjoyed his life. Enjoyed being the black sheep of the family, the one with no future. Funny how things had their own way of turning around to be something completely unexpected.

Speaking of which, it was then that something _unexpected_ caught Bright's eyes.

It was so dark he hardly saw what was going on, but it seemed like… Yep, there was a girl lying on the ground but she wasn't alone. There was someone hunched over her, a hand… inside her shirt? With the second look, Bright realized the girl wasn't moving at all. What the hell? Was there some idiot groping an unconscious girl that in a condition like that, couldn't do anything about it? Boyfriend or not, that was kind of rude, wasn't it?

The car stopped right away and only a second later Bright was already walking towards the figures in the dark.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?"

The young boy hadn't noticed the car and was startled by the loud yell. "None of your business", he replied hastily, hand still inside the girl's shirt. He was obviously annoyed by the sudden interruption. Hell, Bright couldn't have cared less. He was annoyed too, ok? He had been an asshole all his life, but this was something even he couldn't think of doing. What had happened to the good old days?

"Get the fuck away from the girl", Bright spoke with demanding, but yet calm voice. "Did you fail to notice she's out of this world?"

The boy was hardly older than 20, but he seemed to have an attitude to fill the lack of years. He was probably the type to meet a trouble no matter where he went. "You get the fuck away. She's my girl, this has nothing to do with you."

If there was something Bright couldn't deal with, it was young punks such as this one trying to prove the world how cool and strong they were. Bright stepped closer. "Go. Now. Last warning."

The boy didn't take his _warning_ all that good, but got up to his feet. As if Bright hadn't seen it coming -even a blind man would've- he suddenly stormed towards Bright, only ending up with a cut lip as Bright's fist made a contact with it. The boy fell down on the ground on his ass, holding his bleeding lip and mumbling the famous words: "Son of a bitch!"

"Yeah, so I've heard", Bright noted, grabbed the boy by the sleeve and pushed him away from the girl. "You go home and sleep your head sober."

Perhaps the youngster decided the half-conscious girl wasn't worth the trouble after all, because he only gave a rude finger gesture to which Bright laughed, turned around and calmly walked away.

When there was no sign of the boy anymore, Bright turned around to examine the state of the girl on the ground. Only when he kneeled down and brushed messy locks of brown hair off her face, he realized just who it was that he had saved from a horny youngster.

"Shit… What the hell am I to do with you?"

Who else, but passed out Delia Brown?

****

A/N: I know, not much Delia/Bright interaction in this one… you'll have it in the next one, I tell you.


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N:** As always. Thank you, thank you, thank you for the reviews! Every time I find a new review I smile from ear to ear for two days, heh. I'm probably changing the rating of the fic into 'M' just to be on the safe side… well… maybe this chapter ought to explain where I'm headed with this. Accidentally, I swear.

Btw, now that I KNOW Hannah, she might be here. But, it's still D/B fic, ok? That's NOT about to change. Ah, yes, they bicker. Hopefully that'll change soon. It's just the way my mind works, I cannot help it.

**Chapter 6**

It had taken less than five minutes for Bright to decide what to do.

Sure, at first his conscience had told him to abandon the thought right that minute for it was stupid and childish, but by telling himself he couldn't leave the girl there either, he somehow made it acceptable. Acceptable to drag the girl into Amy's car and drive, not towards her home, but his instead. There were at least ten different excuses he tried to make for himself, although none of them really were that convincing.

Oh come on, he couldn't return a half-conscious girl into her home looking like, well, _this_ and stinking of alcohol! What the hell would he have told her father? That he found her lying on the ground wasted; being groped by some fucking moron who didn't know the difference between right and wrong? Oh yeah, Mr. Brown would've loved to hear that one. After that, he would've probably shot the messenger to his doorstep and the tale would've been told. The end.

It wasn't how he had pictured his life to go and so, there she was, lying on his bed, under the covers naturally and sleeping like a baby. She hadn't woken up during the trip at all, not even once if you didn't count her drunken sentences she let out every now and then. It had been rather difficult actually, to carry the unconscious girl all the way to his room without waking the whole house, but he had managed to do so. He liked to think it was the result of all the years he had done sports and the thought, for some reason, amused him. Of course it wasn't that. He had simply had a lot of practice on that department, although usually the ladies he had brought -and carried - home, had been awake. Most of the time, anyway.

Christ. Sometimes he wasn't sure if he still had the mental skills of a 16-year-old, but like usually, he didn't let that significant little detail ruin his mood.

He was brought back from his thoughts by a weird sound. She snored. It wasn't loud, annoying snore like Nicki's, but it was soft and sweet somehow. _Just like the girl herself_, he thought letting his eyes hover upon the sleeping figure. Suddenly she fidgeted in her sleep, moaning quietly and speaking aloud words that made absolutely no sense. Wow, he had never pictured her as a sleep-talker but man, the way she mumbled those words with that husky, sexy voice of hers... Yep, it surely did feel weird to associate the word sexy with sweet and innocent Delia Brown… but it was more than obvious they fitted perfectly.

For a moment he only stood there biting his bottom lip and watching her sleep. There was another moral issue to be solved, yep. What now? He could've gone to sleep on the sofa, but somehow that option felt irritatingly distant and obviously, not-likable. Then again, how would the girl react if she woke up in the morning not only finding herself in someone else's bed instead of her own, but _with_ someone else on top of all? On top?

"You can be on top if you want."

It was the only thing he said before removing his clothes and carefully crawling under the covers. There was more than enough room for both of them, but he couldn't help, but draw the girl closer to his chest. Heck, he could always say in the morning that it had been her idea and that SHE had be the one to snuggle and cuddle and… ha, she would have no choice but to trust his word. She moved again, as if to adjust into his closeness and let out yet another moan bending her head so that it actually touched his front. "You know," he whispered pulling the blanket on top of her covering the girl completely - to keep her warm or to keep his eyes off her? Did it matter?

"If you keep on doing those noises," he continued with a deep voice, "I might need to take a cold shower. With you preferably."

* * *

It was already noon, not that she knew it, when Delia finally opened her eyes slowly. Very slowly.

The first thing she realized was that she was in a room she didn't recognize. That, however, didn't bother her half as much as the acknowledgement of someone's heavy arm pressed against her side. _What the hell have I done? _As so many times before, Delia quickly tried to recall yesterday's happenings but nothing real came to her mind, nothing that seemed important. There was a huge gap between the present moment and her latest memory of the party, which she couldn't refill.

No wait. She had met somebody last night, hadn't she?

Slowly but surely the picture was drawn to her mind. She couldn't remember his name, but she definitely remembered some strange boy coming to where she was standing, babbling insane stuff trying to impress her any way possible. He had talked a lot and hardly nothing he had said had actually made sense, but still, he had tried. He'd earn some extra cuteness points with the whole act and besides, he hadn't looked bad. In the end, she had given up and left the party with the 19 year old young man without even remembering his name. But the question was, what had happened after that?

The hand suddenly twitched slightly and she felt a warm breath against her neck. Now, wasn't this annoying. Why did the same thing always happen to her?

Delia didn't know. It was her fate, wasn't it? To wake up in strange beds without no memories of what had happened. Wasn't this exactly what she had wanted to run away from to begin with? Although, she had to admit this room looked to be a lot different from the rooms she usually found herself in the morning. This was… decent. Normal. Maybe a bit neutral, like someone's guest room, but nevertheless normal. At least there was one pleasant surprise. Pleasant… What a joke.

Taking a deep breath she noticed the scent in her nostrils felt strangely familiar. Why? Should she turn around to face the situation as it was rather than be a coward? She thought about it for a second and decided against it. No, she definitely should not. Facing the situation was the last thing she wanted to do and as weird as it was, she almost enjoyed the sensation the chest against her T-shirt's back caused. No, wait, something was wrong with that one… it wasn't her T-shirt. Nuh huh. It was someone else's T-shirt which meant someone else, other than her that was, had put it on her.. which then again meant something had definitely happened.

_Fuck._ The moan escaped her lips involuntarily and instantly, the arm on her side seemed to tighten it's grip.

The next thing she felt was… _OH MY GOD_… A tongue, yes, a tongue tracing down her shoulder all the way to the nape of her neck and back sending electric shocks through her body. This time the moaning sound was caused by pure pleasure, although it was as involuntarily as the previous one had been.

"I told you already," husky voice whispered, "If you keep on doing that noise, I'll… fucking bath you myself."

Hold on … What the… _Bright?_ It took not more than a half of a second for her to jump up - or, rather, to try and jump up from the bed onto the floor. The minute he felt she moved, he cursed quietly while grabbing her by the waist and pulled her back down refusing to let her get up. Delia smacked against the mattress -and his chest- with force and suddenly, one of his arm went around her neck holding her hands at bay whereas the other one was still wrapped around her waist.

That… that… arrogant, annoying, irritating, stupid, goddamn… damn… asshole! "You son of a bitch!" She shrieked spitting hair out of her mouth and trying to struggle herself free from his arms which turned out to be the weakest struggle she had ever put up. Partly, because the minute she had spoken a wave of migraine had hit her forehead as if to remind her of what she had been doing last night and partly, because her body felt absolutely exhausted… weak… and there was a nasty feeling in the pit of her stomach informing her that something was about to come up. Yes, well, there was only one person she could blame for her own hangover.

That jerk! The guy who had offered her a drink, obviously. Bastard.

When she felt him exhale against her skin, her thoughts returned back to the current situation. God, didn't this suck?

"I thought you were sleeping."

Delia blinked not believing her own ears. _He what?_ He had thought she was sleeping? So fucking what? Was that some kind of rational excuse or did he just imagine it was? The hell it wasn't! What a typical male.

She tried to shove him away with her back, but Bright's grip stayed. "You thought I was sleeping? Does that give you the rights to molest me?"

She felt him chuckle against her back. "I wasn't…" A pause. "Well maybe I was. Just a little." A little? If she had been able, she would've turned around and smacked him. Hard. "But, Delia, you were the one moaning."

_I was not! _Fine, okay, maybe she had. But. "I was asleep, idiot."

He chuckled, again. Of course he understood why she was being so annoying at the moment - he had been prepared for this kind of behavior ever since he had wrapped her into his T-shirt, but now that it was happening, it felt both irritating and amusing. Delia had a temper, yeah, and that surely was amusing, but Jesus… he had honestly thought his natural charm would melt it away in an instant. Strangely, it hadn't.

"Funny, that's what I thought. You made it very clear that you, in fact, weren't."

His voice was like… she whined aloud without even noticing… it was like honey, damnit. Delia acknowledged it with a racing heart, but refused to let it have any greater effect on her. Geez, she wasn't a child anymore! She was an adult and more than capable of controlling her own… whatever. "I didn't know it was you," she tried although the logic of her own sentence was unfamiliar even to herself. "Now let go of me!"

Bright's eyebrow rose and funnily enough, his voice got a sharper edge. Was that twinge of jealousy he felt kicking in or was he just imagining it? "Should I be insulted? You moan when someone touches you even when you don't know who it is, but when you find out it's me, you go ballistic?" Really, why did he feel offended? Bright didn't give himself time to figure it out, but instead, joked his way out of the difficult question. "I don't get your logic." At the moment, he didn't get his own either so…

Sighing out of frustration, she once again tried to move farther away from him. "You're not supposed to." _I don't get it either, jerk. _"Let go." She waited a minute, but nothing happened. "Let go, Bright, now or I'll… " Bright could almost hear her mind trying to come up with the right kind of word to give the needed spunk. Finally, it came; "I'll scream."

Ha, the best one so far. Bright couldn't see her defiant face, but he could definitely imagine it. For that, he almost wanted to turn the girl around just to see if the pouting look on her face looked as seducing now in the morning as it had looked the last time… "Not like my parents have never heard a girl screaming in my room before… and you know, I don't think they can ground me for that one anymore."

To that she said nothing. There was nothing to say. If he had been stupid once, unable to carry out a verbal fight, he sure as hell wasn't that anymore and that annoyed her. When had he grown up, huh?

"Why are you doing this?" She whined, "Why are you torturing me?" Oh gods, even the way she spoke… that seducing, honey-filled and extremely sexy tone of hers that she used, it made Bright's insides twist into these very uncomfortable knots that he could not untie no matter what he tried to think. There was no image gross enough to get his senses to cool down. Not even naked old women. That was bad, alright?

Very bad.

"Why?" He shrugged, pulling the girl even closer, "I don't know. I like you."

She snorted, not bothering to struggle anymore… it wasn't like it was doing any good, now was it? All it did was make her even more aware of just _how_ he liked her… but seriously. _Liked_ her? No way. She was in misery and he was obviously… Enjoying himself? At least that's what the bulge against her back said. What an ass.

"You like me? That's why you decided I need to quit my job and stay in Everwood for the rest of my life?" The honey-filled voice had now turned into mocking and that was something he did not appreciate. She could feel the weight against her backside growing bigger, but refused to admit she had noticed anything to begin with. Damn him to hell for making her go through this kind of crap! "Yes… I can see how much you _like_ me." She hadn't meant to say it, but the words had simply found their way out…

He chuckled to her words as he understood the double meaning he was sure she had meant. Why was she being so difficult? What bad had he done, honestly? He had saved the girl from a mad-lunatic rapist, for crying out loud, and here she was acting as if he was the one that had been taking advantage of unconscious girl! He hadn't! He wasn't! Much. _Oh shut up! _

The point was, he saw a solution Delia didn't even knew existed…

"You don't have to stay in Everwood."

She didn't? He stopped to wonder his own words, but only for a short moment as he came to the conclusion that it could work. Totally. She'd get her wish and he'd get to see her more… that was the only reason, obviously. Not because he wanted to _see _her but because, well, he wanted to keep his eyes on her to, umm… to make sure she didn't do anything as stupid as strip in some dirty clubs, right? Of course. That way Ephram would have no reason to kill him when he'd find out just what Delia had been doing… sure, he had promised not to tell Ephram or his father about Delia's little secret life, but he had no intentions on keeping the promise… unless Delia kept her part of the bargain. But somehow, he was sure she wouldn't and then there was the fact he wanted to know what it was that Delia had done... It wasn't in Delia's nature to give in and let someone else control her life like that, so of course, she'd fight. Was that maybe one of the reasons why he had come to like her so much… even without realizing it? No one walked over Delia Brown, not even he and he liked that.

Maybe he was being insane. Yeah, he had not seen the girl - scratch that - young woman for years and now he was already… well, not dreaming of white fences and kids, but definitely ready to… play with her. To see where it was going… to have fun. No, he only wanted to make sure she didn't do anything stupid, damnit!

_Quit lying to yourself, man._

"Oh, with what money am I leaving then?" Delia's sour question cleared his thoughts and brought him back to the moment. "That's why I need the job, you idiot."

So, should he just tell her now or later? His eyebrow rose. Well, he had never been one to dance around subjects so he figured, better to get it over and done now that he had her in a position where she couldn't run away or smack him. "You could always come work for me."

Delia, unlike he had expected, actually gave a loud, sarcastic laugh as if it had been the best joke ever. "Oh yeah, as a personal sex slave. How much is the salary?"

Jesus Christ, really, when had little Delia become this… cynical? Sarcastic? Tough? He didn't exactly complain; the girl had learnt to defend herself… but something had made her this way. And he was somewhat sure he wasn't going to like it, whatever it was. _Don't worry D, I'm gonna find out sooner or later._

"Not quite what I meant but that could definitely work."

He felt her shoulders chuckle against his chest - it tickled, among other things. Damn, she really needed to stop moving like that… he groaned. Delia wasn't even trying to pull apart from him anymore, just shifted her weight every other second, and it only add to his pleasure. All males had a hunter in them, so of course he felt joy when his precious little prey gave in… _Bright, what would your mother say, huh? _He had once thought he could respect women, that he was man enough to do it. Later, he had become familiar with the fact that there was nothing to respect… not a single woman so far had been worth his respect for they all wanted the same… So, it was only fair he did the same. Surely this one would be no different?

Or was he just lying to himself again? For a moment, he was confused. What was it that he wanted from her again?

"You're unbelievable," she sighed. He couldn't prevent the smile - if only had she known what he was thinking… then again, she most likely had but was stubborn enough to keep it to herself. She was trying to hard to keep up with the game. Why? Didn't she know he always won?

"I know. Don't you just love that about me?"

"No," she spat immediately - a little too quickly if you asked him - and continued; "Where are my clothes?"

At first he felt disappointed; she wanted to get out after all, but suddenly he understood what it meant. She'd have to get up… from the bed… which was a idea he partly didn't like, but partly excited him. Ah, the fun was only beginning. Bright lifted his arm up freeing the girl and pointed the chair next to the bed. Actually, during one sad second he actually felt guilty for acting the way he did, but then, after a little while, he felt all ok again. He had had a whole night to think… and he had come to the conclusion there was something indeed he wanted from her. He just wasn't sure what it was. He wanted to keep her safe… but he didn't. There was no other reason good enough for him to make. It was all about the fact he had seen what Delia had to offer… there was nothing more into it.

"There," he said. Her gaze followed his finger to the chair. There they were, her clothes. Delia could feel her cheeks flush… a fact was, she hadn't even paid attention to the fact she wasn't wearing her own clothes. There was only one thing that could mean. Someone had stripped her and she happened to know just who that someone was.

As far as she knew, she had three choices. She could get up from the bed with the blanket around her… but she was pretty sure if she treid that, he'd pull the blanket back. It was _his_ after all. That left her with two other options. She could try get the clothes and embarrass herself trying to put them on under the blanket… or she could face the devil, get up, get dressed and leave. That would at least show the guy she wasn't someone to play with. Besides, the stupid ass had obviously seen her naked already. She made a mental note to kick his ass later for that one.

So, she did the only thing that she could do to shake him up a bit. She pushed his arms aside and sat up ignoring the drumming pain in the back of her head, letting the blanket fall down and thanking heaven for the fact he had had the decency to at least put a T-shirt on her.

"I'm off," she yawned, stretched her arms and body and stood up. With her back towards him, she ripped the shirt off to quickly replace it with her own top. After that was done, she pulled on rest of her clothes and turned around with a wicked smile on her lips.

_Dude,_ Bright's mind was yelling, _this cannot be Delia Brown._ The pain between his legs was getting annoyingly bearable. Damn her.

"Hope you enjoyed the show, Bright," she barked. The smile was still there on her lips, but what he saw in her eyes, was a death glare. All he could think was that when he'd find out just who it was that had taught to his innocent Delia Brown the way of the game, he'd beat him to a hospital. Wait. Had he just thought of Delia as _his_?

He was screwed. For one, if she ever fond out, she'd rip his balls out. Somehow, he got the feeling Delia was never to be called someone's - the lady owned herself and was damn proud of it. Then, there was the fact Ephram would pretty much do the same to him if he found out. So no matter what way he went, things were bad.

_If you're smart, Bright, you'll let her go and never see her again._

Yes. But was he? "I did," he said, finally, letting that trademark smirk of his decorate his face, "as much as any normal seeing male would." Smart; Bright? Only when it fitted his plans. This time, it really didn't.

"Good, my job is done then," her reply came through gritted teeth. Although she tried to hide her annoyance, he could almost smell it. It was good to know he wasn't the only one being affected here. "That's all you're going to see and now, if you excuse me, I'm leaving," she stated coldly and turned around again. She wasn't sure why she was so annoyed, but she knew that if she didn't get out of his bedroom; out of his house and out of his life right this minute, she might have ended up doing something she'd regret… kick his ass or something else. And she wasn't ready to find out what. Delia tried to remind herself, over and over again that Bright was just playing with her; he made it seem like he wanted her, but he really didn't. How could he? She was a kid through his eyes… He just wanted to win his little challenge and get her give up and quit. Asshole! He was trying to _lure_ her into giving up the job, wasn't he?

Hell would freeze first.

Bright watched her walk to the door in silence and only when her fingers touched the door knob, she heard his snarling voice. "What if I don't?"

Huh? Then, before she even had the time to turn around, her front slammed against the door and she found herself pinned.

Okay. Someone had definitely got up from the bed with a wrong foot…

* * *

**A/N: **Review and you'll get the next chapter faster. I can't help the fact every review makes me want to write… more… and more. So, I'll keep updating if you keep reviewing, ok? Just because the reviews feed my muse, really! 


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Ephram had always made sure to tell his little sister the latest news about Bright's busy life, even when she hadn't asked for any details in particular. Hardly ever brought him up, really, but always waited for someone else to mention his name first. He had always known that despite everything, she'd like to know. He had told her pretty much everything, excluding the stormy stories involving his secret affairs and alike. And so yeah, he had told her how his best friend had changed, changed so much that sometimes it was hard to believe it was the same Bright Abbott he had met when they had first arrived the small town.

None of it, not a single story Ephram had told, could've prepared her for the moment at hand. This was definitely _not_ the Bright Abbott she had known as a kid, no way in hell. Fine, she admitted the fact he had always been kind of a jerk, even when he had been dating Hannah and really tried to be better… but after hearing the talks Hannah had shared with Amy, Delia had very early come to realize that being jerk was simply in his genes and it would never change… but violent was something Delia had never thought he could be, not ever. Now, however, having her face pushed against the door by his strong hand, she was forced to reconsider. Something told her it wasn't just his new career that made him such a horrible idiot. Maybe he had always been like this, but she had just been too young and too damn naïve… too in love with him to realize what was going on. But she wasn't anymore. The childish crush had lived its own time and died like fire without oxygen. No matter how passionate the fire was, without air it didn't last long and though she had once hoped he'd notice her and fall madly in love with her, she'd grown up.

Maybe this wasn't the Bright she had known, but this definitely wasn't the same Delia Brown he had known, either, and at least that gave her some advantage on her side of the game.

Plus, this, this weird farce definitely wasn't how she had fantasized things to go, not even when she had been a horny teenager going through some sort of rough stuff phase that included weirdly intimidating sex fantasies of an act she had never experienced. What an idiot she had been then, waiting for him to appear from New York back to Everwood just for her. She dreamt of him knocking on her door, confessing his undying love for her and then, like in every Disney story, they always got the happy ending. He took her away, back to New York with him and there she was safe. Because he loved her. because he wanted her to be the mother of his children. Shit, just thinking about that time, remembering all those ridiculous plots she had let her mind write, she could feel her face flushing in embarrassment.

Things had changed, thank God.

First and foremost, right now, she was so _fucking_ annoyed that none of those slumbering fantasies dared to so much as open their eyes. So annoyed that she honestly wanted nothing more but to turn around in his arms and knee him where it hurt the most. Couple of times, too, preferably. Then there was the fast she was beyond tired, not to mention suffering from a killer headache… which, to think of it, explained the raging in the back of her head like a loud, echoing gun shot, killing every brain cell the alcohol hadn't managed to touch yet. If the situation hadn't been the kind it was, she imagined she could've even felt a little amused by how he was acting. She could've teased him, annoyed him, told him he was being fucking ridiculous with this jealous-boyfriend number, which had always been completely against his character – especially, she mused bitterly, when she really was no girlfriend of his!

And well, if it was about protecting his best mate's little sister… then he had taken it a few steps too far, okay?

Maybe if she'd been younger, it would've all made sense somehow. But she wasn't. She wasn't a naïve little kid anymore, she didn't need his protection – she didn't want it! She had managed just fine without it so far! It couldn't be some sort of joke, could it? Had he lost a bet again, only this time it included bedding someone easy, huh? Idiot! Or… had he fought with Ephram and he just hadn't told her about the fight yet? Was Bright trying to hurt Ephram through her? No, that wasn't even a possibility; he'd never do such thing to her. Still, she'd have to ask Ephram about that one later, just to make sure…

Holy crap. If she'd really find out this was some sort of bet he had lost, she'd kill him. And his friends. Seriously. She'd hang them by their huts before burying them into her garden. Alive.

Bright's thoughts didn't circle quite the same areas as hers, but he was equally confused. He had never thought of himself as a violent person neither, not when it came to women anyway. If anything, he had always loathed the kind of guys that felt it necessary to prove their power by hitting their girls, and so when he had grabbed Delia and slammed her forward that harshly, he had been as stunned as the girl pinned against his frame. It hadn't been about lust, about him wanting to prevent her from leaving his sight… he had no fucking clue what it was about, why he was so angry…

What was it about her that made him, a grown man, unable to control his own actions?

So no, he had never really been the violent type, but now, having her body locked between him and the door, feeling the soft curve of her bottom against his front, all he could feel was pure rage. Rage that made him want to go and strangle every male that had ever lied eyes on her, touched her, kissed her, made love to her…

Towards whom was the anger aimed at, then? He wasn't sure. Towards the fucker who had tried to have his way with her… or towards Delia for being so fucking stupid in the first place, so damn reckless?

She was like a child never to be left alone more than few seconds or she'd stick a toy car into her nose or something. But he couldn't always be there!

Or maybe that was the problem. Was he mainly angry for himself?

Angry because he could've very easily been too late… because of these things he felt?

Then, as if just realizing what he was doing, his hand quickly left her neck, releasing her body. She ceased the opportunity immediately, of course, and spun around to face him while massaging her sore neck. She was all to ready to spat all kinds of insults and objects at him now that she had been freed, but the look on his face… all the mixed up emotions his eyes reflected, anger, sadness, confusion.

Not a word came out of her mouth. If it had, it would've ruined the moment for sure and for some reason, she couldn't let that happen. Not now.

This couldn't be real. Her mind refused to believe it. Of all the crazy things she had imagined could, maybe, eventually happen in her pathetic little life, the plot bunny in front of her eyes had never even crossed her mind, not like this. This moment, it was something that happened to those heroines in harlequin books, not to city girls that had been forced to move to countryside just because their fathers had had some serious issues to deal with.

The rage had slowly beaten all the other emotions Bright might have felt a minute ago and now he was doing nothing but glaring at her, eyes throwing fire darts at every possible direction and for a moment there, she almost felt guilty. Guilty for something she knew she hadn't done. He wasn't her boyfriend, he wasn't her brother. Not a real friend, not even damn neighbor! He was nothing to him, for crying out loud!

Nothing, huh? Then why did Bright stand there looking at her like that, with arms folded and just itching to strangle her?

Bright couldn't explain it, not even to himself. The more he told himself he was just being protective towards his best friend's little sister, the less he believed it. If that had been the case, his heart wouldn't have jumped every time his eyes met hers… and the damn pressure between his legs wouldn't have been there! Thankfully the said pressure hadn't raised anything… yet. That was good. No matter how many times his mind screamed it was little Delia Brown there, it made no difference.

His body no longer fell into that lie. There was nothing little about Delia Brown anymore.

He hadn't blackmailed her just to protect her from horny assholes. Nor had he done it for Ephram, had he? No. In all honesty, he didn't give a shit about what Ephram would've said or done if he had indeed found out his friend had left his sister there, stripping.

There had been guys; _other_ guys watching her. The operative word being 'other', he figured, not liking this discovery any more than he had liked finding her there in the first place.

Fuck.

Okay, things were more or less getting out of hand and he didn't appreciate it one bit… he had meant to scare her a little, that was all! You know, just enough to make her quit that damned job of hers… he hadn't meant any of this to happen. At first, he had really been joking about the whole thing, giving her month and all, but the way she had reacted, flared up… he had decided to play a little.

And now? The game had grown a lot bigger… and in the end, it'd be her playing him and she'd never even know.

_Great._ Ephram was gonna beat the living shit out of him. Fine! One less Christmas card for his assistant to write, big deal.

Lingering between dimensions, the realm of his thoughts and reality, he realized that Delia was still there. After what had happened, he had half –expected her to slap him and run away, but instead, she stood there silently and just watched him with her big bambi eyes wide open. He could almost taste the bitter flavor of her confusion… she had no idea what was going and he didn't feel like filling her in. Delia had lifted her arms and wrapped them around her upper body as if it had been cold in there, but somehow he could tell it was simply a gesture meant to comfort her. _Protect_ her.

There it was again. _Why do you want to be the one to protect her, Bright?_

Because she's Ephram's little sister, that's why, he decided. That had to be why, damnit… at least in Delia's eyes – that was what she had to be believe. He couldn't let her know, couldn't tell her it was all because… he wanted her?

Trying to pull himself back together without giving everything away, his focus returned to the Brown girl.

"What, no thank yous?" Bright asked suddenly, putting such wave of aggression on her name that she only blinked, staring him with a frown. She should've thanked him? Thank him… for what?

Oh fuck, no.

They had slept together, hadn't they? Oh shit… Since the moment she had opened her eyes and woken up from _his_ bed, Delia hadn't really taken the much needed time to think it through: it about the reason of her being there to begin with, but now it was slowly dawning on her. Gods, she had really had sex with Bright Abbott.

Well it was a logical conclusion. Plus, he was angry and he had to be angry for a reason.

Okay, so, she had slept with him and he was angry because?

…

Nuh huh, nope. Nothing came to her mind. Male logic was too damn difficult to be understood, it seemed. How… and, well, where the hell had she even ran into him? _I really need to stop getting wasted_, she reasoned, before turning her attention back to his bare chest… she tried to swallow, but she had forgotten how… Bare chest? Yep, that was the first time she realized Bright was actually wearing very little… white boxers and nothing more.

Nice.

_You did not just think about that, Delia!_

After a little inner fight, Delia was finally able to collect herself together, at least enough to plan and form a respond. "For what, Bright?" She barked, wishing there had been something heavy to throw at him, "Shoving me up against the door? Humiliating me? _Using_ me?"

He had no idea how, but suddenly the roles had been reversed, much to his disliking – now he was confused and the corned one, whereas she, Delia looked about ready to burst into angry flames.

"Hey, wait a minute … when exactly did I use you, huh?" Bright snapped back to his defense just as angrily, although his tone was no match to hers. Fine, he understood the girl had probably no idea what had happened or how she had ended up into his bed… and he hadn't really bothered to explain either and she hadn't asked!

But that wasn't the point – the point was… the way she had said those words… it made it sound as if…

"I'm the one who's supposed to be angry here!" She continued yelling somewhat frantically – usually when a girl screamed like that, Bright had been lucky enough to witness pretty delicious scenes, but now it didn't feel as tempting as usually, "I woke up in your bed! Who knows what the hell you've done to me while I've been out in the twilight zone!"

Ouch. That sting. _Really_ sting. Weird.

"Oh, that's great, D, really great," he spoke with insulted tone, shaking his head in disbelief… and disappointment. No fucking way was he going to let her turn the tables around like that. What, did she really think that was what had happened last night? That he could do something as disgusting as that? If that was the case, then she wasn't the girl he had thought she was… although… considering the few passed days, that was probably given already.

"So that's the kind of person you think I am?" He spoke again, but this time his voice was just slightly above a whisper. "Nice. Super."

He could've told her the truth of course… then why didn't he? Probably, because he felt she had no rights to even accuse him of such thing. She should've known him better than that!

Delia only blinked rapidly in obvious shock. Maybe she should've known better, yeah, but she didn't, not anymore… she had no clue whatsoever and it freaked her out.

_Truly_ freaked her out.

"I don't know! I don't know anything anymore!" She shouted without pausing so much as to breathe, sounding very much like someone nearing a panic attack, which she was, actually, "You show up, tell me to quit my job – _blackmail­ _me, really, and then I go get drunk and lookie lookie, I wake up here, in _your_ bed and you're angry with me and I don't know why, I should understand, I should know, but I don't, I don't understand this, any of this or why you're doing this to me and I just want to-"

Only when she felt hi arms lock around her back, a hand grabbing the soft fabric of her top into his fist… felt his mouth on hers, nipping the bottom lip… kissing her, devouring her… only then she realized he had actually moved while she had been ranting and that now she finally stopped talking. But when it should've been blessed silence upon them, instead it was something else; noises, shapes, shades. She could feel her heartbeat against her stomach, pulsating on every spot where their bodies met. Her knees buckled and if it hadn't been for him and his arms around her, she would've fallen, no doubt. What, when the hell had she moved her arms? When had they accepted the embrace and traveled to his back underneath his armpits?

It didn't seem to matter to him that he hadn't brushed his teeth yet, or that she hadn't either and after everything she vaguely remembered pouring down her throat last night, she was pretty sure she tasted like shit. It made her gather her bones in record speed, pull back slightly breaking the kiss, embarrassed. Finally she raised her hands between them to push him away.

_That's it, _she screamed inside her mind, _I'm never drinking again!_ She also made a mental note to kill Jill for letting this happen. What a friend she had there, sigh.

But Bright wasn't giving up that easily and pushing through, his face met hers again. "Bright…" Delia managed to choke out, turning her to side and successfully evading his kisses that landed on everywhere but her lips, "stop that…"

He complied, although reluctantly and only because he had to breathe, too. That had _not_ been a gentle kiss. No, there had been tongues involved before she had suddenly grasped the reality and therefore, decided to be difficult and put an end to it. What, it had been a fucking brilliant kiss, damnit!

She was panting too and right then, in his ears, it sounded like the most beautiful, arousing thing ever. It was all because of him, the panting, the red on her cheeks, the look in her eyes.

Holy mother of Jesus… that had been one kiss. She wanted to bring her fingers to her lips, touch the burning spot where his lips had ravished hers, but she couldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing her do it. Having nothing else to do, she tried to push him farther away for the second time, with a little more spun this time, though, and now Bright's arms did leave her body and instructed. He took a step back before she could push him again. Only one, though, because he didn't want to let her have too much space in case she decided to do a so called hit and run. Staring right into her eyes before she cut it off by looking down, he patiently waited for her to say something. While waiting, he cocked his head to left, then slowly to right erupting a small cracking sound, which mad her wince. He had known it would.

But unlike he had thought, she still remained silent, eyes glued onto the floor. He'd really hit some spot there, huh? _Good._ At least when she'd eventually eave the room, angry as hell no questions about that one, she'd take something more than just a memory with her.

"What are you doing tonight?" The question coming from him surprised them both. Delia for she hadn't expected him to speak so casually and Bright, because he had decided that it would be the girl to break the silence.

"Not you," she threw immediately lifting her chin in protest and finally finding herself again. Then, for a reason she couldn't quite comprehend, she went and added the truth, with collapsed shoulders and a sigh. "I'll be working," she said.

Ah, right, she had mentioned she had some other jobs too… Bright tried to remember if Ephram had ever mentioned those and he was almost sure the guy had told his sister was waiting tables in some local bar or something… oh well, he'd find out the exact details later. It was no use asking her, never in a million year would she willingly tell him.

So, another tactic into the ring, then. "What are you doing after that?"

"Still not you," Delia bit… but couldn't help herself. "Probably stopping by at the club, ya know, to beg for Mac's forgiveness," she added with a shrug.

It that was a joke, it wasn't very funny. No, it didn't make him laugh or even smile… quite the opposite. "I don't think so," he argued coolly with such angel face that she had to retake his words in her mind to make sure she had heard right.

She had. What a cocky son of a bitch.

Then it clicked. "Even if I play your game, Abbott, you gave me a month, remember?" She pointed out, smirking with relished malice, completely oblivious to the fact she had gone back to calling him by his last name. If he thought she'd give up on her job just because he was stupid enough to threaten her, he had another thing coming! He'd have it his way only after one hell of a fight.

Damn… definitely a mistake on his part. Should've told her to resign right away. "Yeah," he agreed, "Doesn't mean I gotta like it."

Oh for the love of… what rights did he have? What rights did he have to come and say any of the things he had said, or do the things he had done?

"I don't care," she snapped, exhausted and frustrated, not wanting to fight anymore but to go home and sleep, "I need the job and that's that."

"Have dinner with me."

… Huh, what? Whatever she had been thinking before his words, was now gone and forgotten. Now there was nothing but a big, fat line of question marks.

Was he for real?

"What?"

"Have dinner with me," he repeated calmly as if to a kid, definitely enjoying the way her mouth had fallen open and eyes widened. Man, even when she had been a kid, it had always been fun to shake her up a bit. At least some things hadn't changed… good, real good.

She was still trying to understand the meaning of the sentence and what exactly the word 'dinner' represented in a sentence like that. With Bright it was always… "You mean like a date?" She questioned doubtfully, with one eyebrow raised questioningly. What the fuck was going on with him?

"You already got me into your bed," she continued sarcastically, "why bother with the dinner?"

Bright, however, coldly ignored her last comment as if it had never been said. "No, not a date", he clarified with an amused smile, "Like you and me, old friends having a dinner and talking. Exchanging news. I mean, let's face it, I _am_ going to find out your dirty little secret sooner or later, and I'd kind of want to hear it from you, D."

Ok, so he wanted to take her out so that he could interrogate her some more? No thanks… "Not happening." _What did you think, Delia, that he actually wants to spend some time with you because he likes you?_ Not likely. He had probably been drunk, too. She had already warmed his bed, there was no need for a thing such as date, anyway.

… unless she had really outdone herself under the covers and he simply wanted a rematch. Somewhere inside, she smiled – and hated the fact she did… she blamed the kiss – it had done the worst thing possible; proved they definitely were compatible in some areas. _Very_ compatible indeed.

"Which one? Secret or dinner?" He asked then. There it was, Bright Abbott's trade smirk all over his face where it belonged. There had actually been a time during which she would've done anything – _anything_ – to see it, to be this close to the guy.

"Neither. I've got to go to work."

He had decided not to ask it, but the question slipped out anyway. "Where you work?"

It cracked a smile out of her, but unlike her previous ones, this one was actually genuine smile, not a malicious smirk.

Boy, he really wasn't one to give that easily, was he?

"Another secret you'll never reveal," she declared letting out a small laugh, forced her body to move and turned around simply exiting the room without saying anything else.

_We'll see about that, little D, we'll see._

This time he didn't try to stop her, but stayed there on the spot, stood there listening to the sound of her footsteps as she ran downstairs, probably hoping to avoid all of his family members… but luck seemed to had run out when it came to little Delia Brown today. He couldn't help but laugh out loud when he heard her say something. Ah, she had run into… he stopped breathing to hear better, continuing only after recognizing the other source of the voice. Sounded like Amy to his precious ears.

… Damn. A minute or two and she'd run into her brother's room, demanding for an explanation… and for the first time in a very, very long time, he'd actually have non to give and no desire to lie.

Yep. That sucked.

**A/N: ** so, so, so, so sorry it's taken forever! I've been away, haven't had net and as if that was not enough, I've had a bit of a writer's block with this one… finally figured the only way to overcome it was to forget it and just write. Erp. So if the chappie is really sucky, that's why. If it isn't, then good.

Yeah, ohkay, they don't act like Delia and Bright of today's Everwood? THEY'RE OLDER, for fuck's sake, people change. So what? Deal! HA! Just had to point that out, again, meh. You know, before someone comes and slaps me to the moon just because little Delia isn't as innocent as you'd like her to be… or Bright as whatever you'd want him to be.

… although, YAICKS, I think there might even be fluff somewhere along the ride which is just… scary.

Sorry, btw, the chapter (like the ones before) is unbetaed and I wrote it in around 6am… and then I had to retype it to mom's comp to be able to post it since my laptop doesn't have net at the moment and blah blah. So typos and such, very possible.

Anway, I hope you dun find it all too boring – I'm always so slow with progressing when it comes to relationships, meh, and this is no exception.


	9. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Here again. Yes, this fic is very AU in oh, so many levels. But ooooh welll.

I know some of you love Ephramy and can't stand the idea of Madison but both Ephram and Madison will be in this fic and as established, they _are_ married and have three kids and that's not about to change, because it it just isn't, I'm sorry. Amy's gonna be around too, but it's not likely this thing will turn into some Bright/Delia + Madison/Ephram/Amy triangle... It might, but not likely. For one, I'm kind of fond of this new Amy in my ficcie - she doesn't annoy me nearly as much as the one in the series - and secondly, I happen to be a very passionate Madison/Ephram lover ::shrugs:: If you can't handle that, then I'm sorry. Thanks for reading so far and see you in another lifetime or, er, something :)

Yeah, some might find all this drama boring as hell, but well, tough shit. Don't read it, then.

Thanks for all the reviews, I know I've been slow with the updates, so it's really nice you haven't all given up on hope seeing this story continued. Feedback makes my day, flames make me laugh at the poor, insecure people that cannot handle the fact not everyone are as narrow-minded as they are.

If there's anyone out there that would actually want to beta this damn thing from start, then please let me know, alright?

This is more like a filler chapter but oh well, hope you enjoy anyways :) For my defence, let me say, I'm tired, I'm hungry, and my back hurts. Plus, I can't open my .word cause my comp keeps crashing when I do so this thing's spelling hasn't been checked. At all! So be gentle on me, oki::rolls eyes:: Oooh, I do have good news too! I finally figured out exactly where I'm going with this fic so hopefully the updates will be faster cough can't promise anything, though.

**Chapter 8**

_5... 3... 2... _

"Bright!"

"One..." he breathed out sourly, still standing there next to his bed, half-naked and simply waiting for Amy to appear, which he knew she would. She always did. No way she'd let something this big and unexpected go without demanding to hear some details (preferably dirty) and analyzing them for hours and hours to come. He had never really understood if it was a girl-thing or just Amy-thing, but dude, ever since she was a kid, she'd always been like that. Everything had to be turned upside-down and analyzed. Maybe she got it from their Dad, he wasn't sure, but figured it might be perfectly reasonable explanation. Some kind of doctor-logic, maybe?

As expected, the door flung open, banging against the wall on its way, and Amy burst into her brother's room with serious face on her usually beautiful face.

Yep. The same old Amy Abbott - not even having a kid to raise could change this girl.

That glare, though, it _really_ didn't bring out her best qualities, he noted, but thought it better not to mention it out loud. Like ever. Well, he'd grown up somewhere in the middle and getting under her skin didn't feel as important anymore. Although, admittedly, teasing Amy would never, ever, lose its magical charm, he was sure of that. It would always be fun as hell, but only under the right circumstances.

This didn't fall into the said category, though.

"What did you do?" She demanded right away, hands on her hips and not bothering to acknowledge his annoyed expression or the fact he hadn't even had a chance to clothe himself yet. Well, damn, it was her brother; she'd seen him naked hundreds of times, big deal. Nothing she hadn't seen yet, so.

Plus, there really wasn't anything that could've stopped Amy Abbott on the mission.

He shrugged, impassive and turned around not really wanting to take in the look on her face. At times like these, she looked and _felt_ just like their mother and well, that woman had always possessed the ability to get the truth out of her son. Bright didn't particularly like the fact his younger sister had seemed to inherit the said ability and was, on top of all, very well _aware_ of it.

Before saying anything at all, he walked to his desk and grabbed a pair of jeans that had been laid upon the chair.

"I didn't do anything," he replied then, pulling the jeans on. _At least not much._

"Yeah, sure," she snorted back, obviously having some trouble believing her brother's words, "So why did Delia run out of _your_ room then?"

Good point.

The way he saw it, he had two opportunities and at the moment, he didn't really favor either one. Either he could come up with some big, fat, fancy story and lie, in which case there was a very high chance of her seeing through him and smacking him in the head… or he could, for once, do the impossible and tell the simple truth.

Turning around while scanning the room for a shirt, he sighed. "Listen, if I tell you something, will you promise to keep it to yourself?"

Amy just stared at him for a moment as if trying to decide if this was something she wanted to hear or not - there was always the possibility of him blurting out something so twisted and dirty that would make her ears burns… and which she _so_ did not need to hear...

The silence didn't bother him - it was fine since it gave him some time to think _and _grab his old T-shirt from the floor. He pulled it over his head, glancing down. The dark picture in front had faded away long time ago and surprisingly, he found himself trying to remember if it'd been some logo of a band he'd once loved more than life, but already forgotten. Man, it felt weird, seeing and having his old things around the place like he'd never left in the first place. But hey, with his parents having shit load of his stuff still in the household, he rarely needed anything at all while visiting, which saved him the trouble of packing. So really, he wasn't complaining.

"So?" Bright prompted when the silent girl just stood there, observing him with flashing eyes. Man, she still did, played with a lock of hair, twisting it around her finger whenever she was deep in thoughts. He remembered teasing her with Colin about that one when she was younger and she'd always, every time, claimed she - or they for that matter - had no clue what they were talking about.

Finally, Amy came to a decision. "Okay, what is it?" She sighed - she simply had to find out what was going on.

Bright's eyebrows quirked into an amused question. "Promise me, Amy."

The low, _firm_ voice made her nod without hesitations or any kind of mockery. There would be plenty of time for that one later if the occasion called for it, but somehow it really seemed something was different about him now and she wasn't sure why or even what. "Fine, I promise," Amy assured.

He drew in a breath and exhaled, slowly. He was a little nervous about something. Why? Amy tilted her head trying to fix her gaze on his eyes, but he kept avoiding hers with his best abilities. Not that THAT was anything new - he never looked her into the eye when he'd done something wrong, like drowned her favorite Barbie into the toilet just for fun.

Then finally, the wandering gaze paused and her eyes caught his. _Now we're getting somewhere..._

He cleared his throat. "The guys told you I took off with a brunette, didn't they?"

Okay, it definitely wasn't the question she thought he would ask, but it was a start. So she nodded with pursed lips, trying so hard to understand what the hell was going on. "Something like that, yeah."

At that his hand rose up to the back of his head, nervously scratching his neck - never a good sign, she noted, but didn't say anything.

"Did they also mention that the said brunette was a, er, stripper who I sort of... might have... accidentally... pulled down from the stage and... you know... forced to go home... with me?"

Amy blinked. Twice. She probably should've been surprised or horrified or something, yeah, but you know, she'd lived long enough in the same town with her brother to know that these things, they just happened when it was Bright in question. It was an unsolved mystery how he always managed to get himself entangled with this shit, but once again, it had happened. Guess it was his one true talent.

A stripper. No wonder he hadn't wanted to talk about it.

"No," she snorted somewhat cynically, folding her arms, "that part they left out." _Goddamn assholes_. She made a mental note to kick their sorry asses later; they were supposed to be her friends, too and well, leaving such information untold… well that just wasn't acceptable, ok?

"Figured as much," he shrugged and let out a small laugh before continuing, "fuck, Amy, I'm not supposed to tell you, you know. This is not my secret to share."

As it that had ever stopped him before! _Get real._ "Right," she spoke with a dismissing wave, not paying attention to his pained tone, "but you're my brother so I don't count."

"Right, behold the Abbott logic." Bright was somewhat sure that if he'd thought about it some more, he could've easily found the flaw in her logic, but the truth was, right now he didn't give a fuck. He needed to talk about this with some, for fuck's sake, and who the hell would be better than his sister?

"Continue," she prompted impatiently.

"Anyhow, the thing is… _Delia_ happens to be that brunette, ok?" He started.

"Delia? _Our_ Delia?"

Bright nodded... and Amy's face fell, but before she could form a question, he spoke again, "No, I dunno what happened, Amy, I just saw her there, ok? She was wearing practically nothing… and shit" - an awkward hand raked through his hair - "... I thought Ephram would kill me if he'd ever find out."

Aha, right. "So, you pulled her down from the stage just for Ephram, then?" She questioned sharply, a bit amused - that one she didn't buy, not now, not ever.

He should've known, really, that Amy if anyone would cling onto all the nasty, annoying little details he didn't want to think about. "I dunno," he sighed truthfully, "I thought so."

"You thought so?" Amy repeated somewhat stunned. Well, what was she supposed to say, huh? He'd done some pretty stupid things in his days, fine, but this one… this one was new.

"Seriously, Amy, I have no clue," Bright whined, "I like her, ok?"

She stared, but he could see the smile starting to appear in the corners of her mouth. "You _like_ her?"

Fuck, she was really enjoying herself, wasn't she?

"Yeah," he snapped, "I really like her."

"Delia Brown? You like Delia Brown?"

Why did she say it like that and why was she smirking, huh? What the fuck was she smirking for, damnit?

"I'm sorry, I just - you like Delia."

"Shut up," Bright snapped, annoyed. Why the hell was it so difficult for his own sister to understand that he _liked_ someone. He'd _liked_ - no, he'd _loved_ Hannah and she knew it, so it wasn't like he was completely uncapable of such thing.

"No, I'm sorry," she said after a moment of staring, "it's just... wow."

"Yeah," he sighed, defeated. He had no clue how it'd happened, but yeah, he obviously liked her... _or then you just want her into your damn bed_, he thought, which he supposed was close enough anyway. _Damn, you really messed things up this time, Abbott... _He hadn't planned this to happen, for fuck's sake! He'd only been in Everwoof for few days! But still, the little voice in the back of his head kept nagging, telling him it didn't matter... _You've known this girl all your life, it just took you some time to notice that somewhere along the ride, she grew up._ And let it be added, a really nicely she'd grown too...

Another moment went by without neither saying anything... "So. Delia's a stripper?"

Man, she was seriously having hard time getting past that fact, wasn't she? "I'm sure she'd like you to call her exotic dancer," he said with a shrug, imagining all the great insults Delia could've thrown at Amy just now. Yep, even if Delia had been something as absurd as a prostitute - he snorted - she would've probably demaned people call her a courtesan. Hah, or companion! Oh, funny.

Bright couldn't play with the amusing thought for long though, as Amy had already another question. "Why is she a stripper?" she asked bluntly, blind to Bright's amusement, "Sorry, I mean, exotic dancer?"

"I dunno yet," he answered honestly, "but I intend to find out. She was supposed to go to college, wasn't she?" Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was pretty sure he'd heard all there was to know about Delia's great plans to be a doctor like his father, but... well, obviously something big had happened.

"Yeah," Amy admitted with a nod, completely oblivious to the thoughts raging through his head, "but then she chose to stay and work to collect some money... in the end she announced that she wants to go to Africa." The day the 'Big News' had reached the people of Everwood, well, it'd been one hectic day full of rumours and gossip. Everyone had had a theory of some kind, some better than others. Whether any of the rumours had actually hit home, no one knew for sure since Delia never really talked about it. Amy's personal favorite was the one rumour about Delia being pregnant. Yep, still managed to make her smile. In the end, as said, Delia had made her known plan but not many believed her desire to go to Africa was the real reason behind it all...

Bright only sneered. "Right. Africa my ass." Apparently, Bright didn't believe that one either. Amy didn't blame him - she didn't really buy it either.

Wait a minute... The way Bright was looking at her, glancing around... Amy's mind hit rewind and all the sudden she was serious again. There was more, wasn't there? "Bright... what did you do?"

What? Why was she staring at him like that again? He fidgeted, teeth scraping his bottom lip and looking away again. "Nothing."

Yeah, _sure._ "Bright."

Holy fuck, she really couldn't let it go, could? Great, just great. "Fine, okay, so I may have... " Er, how do you tell your sister you - "... blackmailed her a little."

"YOU WHAT?" Amy shrieked, eyes wide and hands waving in the air. God, she'd known his brother was stupid, but come on, there had to be a line somewhere! That was all she was asking for, really.

"Well, what the hell was I supposed to do!?" Bright snapped his defence. He was already regretting the whole deal as it was, the last thing he needed was Amy to make it worse!

But it _was_ Amy, so trust it to her to make it just that - worse. It was the one thing in which she never failed. "Oh I don't know," she bit angrily, "like stay OUT of it?! Are you crazy!?"

He snorted. "Apparently!" Besides, why the hell was _she_ angry? This whole thing had nothing to do with her!

"God, Bright..." she sighed heavily and shook her head, "what did you tell her?"

Oh well, might as well tell the whole story. Not like lying would do much good at this point anyway, right? So, he shrugged, saying, "That she's got a month to quit that job or I'll tell her family what she's been doing," he paused with a smirk before contuining with amused voice again, "Delia Brown may not be the little girl she was, but there are few things even she wouldn't do to her family."

Amy nodded. Her brother's big plan was definitely starting to reveal itself to her... but she wasn't so sure she liked it. "Like let them know what she's doing for her living?" Someone would get hurt and it was rarely Bright...

"Yeah."

Before she could actually think it further, Amy blurted out, "But I thought she works at Sam's."

Bright's eyebrows rose immediately and a malicious smile tugged his lips. Aha, one less secret to solve... "Sam's, huh? Nina's place?" He asked, not waiting for confirmation, "Hmm. Good to know."

_Shit._ Amy could already see all the pretty little scenarios inside her head... "Bright," she pleaded, realizing her mistake a little bit too late, "whatever you're thinking, don't. Don't do it."

Bright's face was as innocent as angel's when he replied, "I have no idea what you mean."

Amy sighed, admitting her defeat (there was no way she'd get him to admit his evil plan, but she knew damn well he had one, always did) and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, sure, of course you don't."

But really, they both knew the truth...


End file.
